Twin Black Phoenix
by NighthawkTM
Summary: It is the Silver Millenium and everything is not as nice as it seems. While the nobles live in luxery the common people live in sorrow and fear. Ranma was street boy with a single friend when his life changed. Now he will save his home from Serenity.
1. Prelude

Disclaimer: None of the characters of Ranma ½ and Sailor   
Moon belong to me. I recommend that you don't sue me as   
I don't have the money to even afford a lawyer for 15   
minutes.  
  
Twin Black Phoenix  
A Ranma ½ and Sailor Moon Crossover  
By Tomas Megerson  
  
Note: This is going to be dark in some places. It will   
be extremely dark at times. If you don't like dark fics,   
then I don't recommend it.  
  
Prelude  
  
The two pick pockets looked at each other. Looking   
back around the corner they saw the prey that caught their   
eyes. A pair of girls with their money pouches hanging on   
the outside of their clothes. Easy prey to expert thieves.   
Despite neither one being over thirteen years of age, both   
boys were experts in their field.  
  
"Well, Ranma, do we go for it or not. It has been   
a long time since we had a real meal. I wouldn't mind   
something besides rats for a change."  
  
"I don't know, I mean look at their clothes. They   
must have some sort of rank to be wearing that. It may be   
too risky to chance it."  
  
"Come on, I know that you could go for a real meal   
as much as I can. Hell, I haven't even seen a rat in the   
past three days. We haven't eaten for longer than that.   
Besides since when have we been caught?"  
  
"Well, Tomas, there was the time we first met.   
And what about when we tried to work the space port, or   
how about the time you tried to steal from that restaurant.   
Or maybe that merchant's ship last month or..."  
  
"Okay, okay, how many times have they actually   
held us?"  
  
"Alright, I'll give you that one. Still should   
we?"  
  
"Come on we just need a few coins. It isn't like   
we're going to beat them up and take it from them. We'll   
use our normal routine. I got left you got right. Look   
they're movin' on. We go or not?"  
  
Sigh "We go, of course. I could use that meal."  
  
The two of them calmly walked out of the ally and   
headed toward their targets. Moving with a practiced easy   
they passed the two girls at a calm walk neither so much   
as breaking stride. They rounded the next corner and smiled   
at each other. Tomas opened his hand to reveal six gold   
coins in his palm. Ranma opened his showing four.  
  
"See, piece of cake Ranma. They never knew that   
we flinched them. It was as easy as all the other times.   
Now how about that meal?"  
  
"Why don't we visit that small Earth food stand four   
blocks over. We can get a lot for just one of these coins.   
We can eat for a week there."  
  
Another voice came from behind the two boys. "How   
about you eat in the prison under the palace? Stealing is   
wrong, especially from royalty." They turned around to see   
a well muscled man wearing a Royal Guardsman Uniform. One   
word came from the two of them at the same time.  
  
"RUN!" Before they got two steps they were yanked   
off of their feet and hit over the head sending them both   
into darkness.  
***  
Ranma slowly opened his eyes. A putrid smell flooded   
his nostrals as he took in his surroundings. He could feel   
what seemed to be straw or hay under his hands. To him it   
was as if he was on the softest bed in the world. It was a   
lot better than the streets in the alleys that he normally   
slept on. He pushed himself up and glanced around at his   
surroundings. The bars on the door gave away where he was   
immediately. "Great, a dungeon. How do we get out of this   
one." Looking around he failed to see Tomas anywhere.   
"Separate cells, too. This just keeps gettin' better and   
better. Well, I can't do anything but wait now. I might   
as well get some sleep." Ranma laid down on the straw and   
allowed the darkness to claim him.  
  
Some time later Ranma awoke as his cell door slammed   
open. He didn't even have a chance to sit up before hands   
yanked him off of the ground. He was carried unceremoniously   
out of the cell and dropped on the floor. A set of cuffs   
were locked around his wrists and ankles. After being pulled   
to his feet he glanced to his right and saw Tomas similarly   
shackled. Tomas gave him a slight smile and shrugged. "So   
you were right this time."  
  
One of the guards hit him with a steel covered fist   
in the stomach. Tomas doubled over in pain and dropped to   
his knees with a loud groan. Another guard kicked him in the   
face at the sound. Ranma moved to defend his friend when a   
club hit him across the back forcing him to drop to the floor.   
It was at that point that the man who had arrested them in the   
first place appeared.  
  
"You will remain silent at all times. Unless a   
question is spoken directly to you will not answer it. Do I   
make myself clear?"  
  
"Go to hell, you bastard" Tomas spit out a glob of   
blood on to the soldier's boot. Then man's eyes narrowed   
and he nodded to his subordinates. Whips descended on the   
two thieves in numbers. After a half-hour of the flogging   
the two boys were yanked to their feet.  
  
The man, they now knew him to be a captain, grinned   
wickedly at the two. "Now that you seem to have learned   
your lesson we can go. The Queen wishes to see you." The   
two semi-conscious youths were dragged through the corridors   
of the Royal Palace of Serenity. The walls were bright with   
lanterns glowing giving the entire place the feel of a warm   
home. There was thick carpet running along the floor. It   
was a royal blue color with a red one running along it. The   
two boys would have gapped at the ancient furniture, the   
expensive paintings, or the irreplaceable vases if they hadn't   
been occupied with something else. Ranma and Tomas were   
busy trying to stay conscious as they headed for an unknown   
destination.  
  
Ranma raised his head as they came to a stop in front   
of a pair of closed doors. Glancing off to the side, his face   
paled. He turned to Tomas who had a similar expression of   
terror on his face. They were in the presence of the famed   
Sailor Senshi. It wasn't a good fame, either. They were   
commonly known as Queen Serenity's personal 'removal' agents.   
They handled all of the people who spoke out against the   
Queen and in as violent a manner as they could. Both boys   
had witnessed such an operation while they were in the slums.   
A pair of Senshi came over the wall letting loose their   
magic at everyone. A large number of people were critically   
wounded and there were more than a few deaths. Only three   
others besides the pickpockets escaped unscratched. The fear   
they had of the two Senshi standing guard paled when they   
were faced with what lay in the room, however.  
  
Before them in all her glory was Queen Serenity.   
She would be passing judgment on them herself. The two young   
thieves froze at the look in her eyes. She was like an   
emotionless void. Her eyes were so cold hell didn't even have   
a chance of melting them. They could see it in her eyes, how   
she didn't care for them at all. It was as though the only   
thing that mattered to her was herself, and everything else   
was to be stepped on. It was when she spoke, though, that   
made them want to run. It took every bit of courage that   
both had to keep from trying to run away.  
  
"What is the crime Captain?"  
  
"Thievery, Your Majesty, of the Royal Family of   
Saturn."  
  
"Are there any witnesses?"  
  
"I saw them commit the crime myself, Your Majesty."  
  
Serenity's eyes never changed. "Very well, hang them   
at dawn."  
  
"Yes, Your Majesty."  
  
It was here that Lady Pluto, Senshi of Time stepped   
forward. "Your Majesty, I need to speak to you in private   
concerning this matter."  
  
Serenity nodded her head and looked once more at her   
soldier. "Captain, have one of your soldiers toss them in   
the same cell. We can allow them to be together one last time.   
Also feed them, they are young after all. Then return here."  
  
"Yes, Your Majesty."  
  
After the two had been dragged out Serenity turned to   
her first advisor. "What is the matter Lady Pluto?"  
  
"I saw the stream of time ripple around those two when   
you sentenced them. If they die, it will lead to your downfall.   
Their deaths will be the spark that turns everyone against you,   
no matter who they are. If you want to secure your power, they   
must live."  
  
Serenity's eyes narrowed. Had it been anyone else to   
say such a statement she would have laughed them off and had   
them quietly taken care of. Pluto was different, though.   
Her views of the future were never wrong. If she said that   
they must live to secure her throne, then she had no choice.   
She wasn't about to let Pluto get away with giving these   
orders to her, though. "Fine, you deal with them. I don't   
care what you do, but you will take care of them. Our   
background checks proved that neither has a family. They   
will be placed under your direct care as of tomorrow. You   
are responsible for them now, Lady Pluto." Pluto looked as   
though she was going to argue the point, but the look in her   
Queen's eyes made her step down. Serenity turned toward the   
soldier standing by the door. "Captain, you will escort   
Lady Pluto down to the detention cells tomorrow morning so   
she can retrieve her wards. That will be all, from the both   
of you." The two bowed and took their leave of Queen   
Serenity.  
***  
The door slammed close on the cell containing Ranma   
and Tomas. Ranma picked himself up and moved over to the   
single slab of stone that was to be used as a bed. Tomas   
pulled himself over to the wall and sat with his back to it.   
Neither felt like talking about what had happened in the   
queen's council chamber. They both knew that unless they   
did something they'd be dead by the time the sun rose into   
the sky. Ranma laid down on the slab of stone, feeling its   
cold send shivers through his spine. Much like the queen's   
eyes did. He glanced over at his friend. "I was scared   
Tomas. I was scared shitless of her."  
  
"So was I. I'm surprised that I managed to stay   
still when she looked at me. I want to bolt out of the room   
try to escape even die just to avoid that stare. It was like   
the eyes of the Devil himself."  
  
"All of the rumors are true. People just disappearing   
without a trace. Other thieves just missing for weeks and   
then appearing with their throats cut. I wouldn't be   
surprised if she drew the knife across their throats herself.   
She looks heartless enough to do it."  
  
"No, Ranma, she wouldn't. She'd order some one to   
do it and watch from the side laughing the entire time at   
the fate she dealt out. And we're next for her. She marked   
our funeral as the next one to go." Tomas sighed and   
stretched his legs out. Closing his eyes and drooping his   
head he tried to think. "There must be a way to get out of   
here, to escape. All we need to do is find it."  
  
Ranma sighed and shook his head. "We can't do   
anything, Tomas. They brought supper with us when they threw   
us in here and put on paper. We've got no silverware to use,   
and they wouldn't do anything about us if we acted sick.   
They're going to hang us in the morning anyway. All that   
would do would be to save them some money on the rope. What   
can we do?"  
  
A hard look came into Tomas's eyes. It was the look   
of someone who was prepared to face death and had nothing to   
live for. "We ambush them when they try to get us in the   
morning. I'll rush the first one in. You try to get his   
weapon. Maybe Lady Luck will shine on us and we can get away.   
If we make it to the spaceport we can stow aboard a shuttle and   
leave to a different planet. What have we got to loose?"  
  
Ranma brought a grim smile to his face. "Nothing.   
They hang us, or shoot us. Either way we'll be dead. At   
least we can go down in a fight. You know I never thought   
it would end this way."  
  
"What did you think would happen? We're a couple   
of pickpockets, Ranma. The only future we had was to either   
get out of the black, or die 'cause of these Royal bastards.   
Looks like it might be number two."  
  
Ranma moved toward the side of the door and sat   
against the wall. "We'll make it Tomas. We're the best ain't   
we? We're not goin' down without a fight, and we have yet to   
lose a fight. Let's get some rest. Wake me up for a second   
shift."  
  
"Sounds like a plan. G'night, Ranma."  
  
"Night Tomas."  
  
***  
Setsuna walked up to the cell door. The captain of   
the guard nodded to greet her on the morning. "Lady, are you   
ready to take them off of our hands?"  
  
"Yes, Captain, please open the door." The cell opened   
to reveal Ranma alone in the back of the room. Setsuna raised   
an eyebrow and stepped through, only to be tackled by something   
off to the side.  
  
Ranma sprung forward going for the guard's weapon, only   
to realize too late that they were dead. "Tomas its one of the   
Senshi! RUN!" Tomas looked down to see a set of ruby eyes   
that he recognized from the day before. Diving out into the   
hall he drove his fist into the captain's stomach. Caught by   
surprise, the large man doubled over with the wind knocked out   
of him, only to have his nose broken by an open palm strike.   
  
Ranma, meanwhile, was in a struggle against the Senshi   
of Time. Both had their hands wrapped around the Time Key and   
were struggling for the weapon. Setsuna finally got a bit of   
leverage and propelled Ranma into the wall, knocking him out.   
Turning to the door, she approached Tomas from behind a struck   
him across the back of the head with the Key. He collapsed   
immediately at her feet.  
  
Setsuna took a good look at the guards around her.   
(That boy did a lot of damage. If I hadn't been here, they   
just might have escaped. This confirms what I thought about   
them, though. The pig-tailed one shouldn't have even been   
able to touch the Time Key. They will do nicely.) She looked   
at the captain who was struggling to rise. "Go get a medical   
team for your men. And have that nose looked at, you don't   
want it to become crooked. I'll be taking these two from you   
now. If the queen asks, just tell her that I was right."   
She raised her staff and the two boys disappeared along with   
her into the gates of time.  
  
***  
  
Tomas slowly awoke from his forced sleep. He kept   
his breathing shallow and his eyes only slightly opened.   
(Where am I? And why does it feel so soft under me?) He   
opened his eyes fully and sat up. As he looked around the   
room, he started to get nervous. The place wasn't just rich   
it was opulent. Getting out of the bed, he headed toward the   
dresser on the far side of the room. He was considering   
searching through it when the door opened. Spinning on his   
heal, he came face to face with a sight that he feared.   
Standing before him was Sailor Pluto. She spoke softly, but   
commandingly.  
  
"Follow me. I have need to talk to you and your   
friend." Not knowing anything else to do, Tomas nodded and fell   
in behind her. His gaze wandered around the halls. He saw   
expensive vases and elegant paintings and a number of other   
riches as well. It was hard for him to keep his mind on the   
fact that their was one of the Sailor Senshi in front of him,   
taking him to who knew where. Eventually they came to a stop   
near a small wooden door. Pluto motioned Tomas to the door.   
He approached and hesitantly opened it.  
  
What he had been expecting was a torture chamber or a   
dungeon. What he saw was an empty room save for three chairs   
and Ranma. Knowing his part, Tomas moved over to Ranma and sat   
in the chair next to his. Pluto closed the door and moved to   
sit in the chair across from the two boys.  
  
The silence lasted for almost five minutes. Ranma and   
Tomas were too scared to try and break the silence. So far   
the Senshi hadn't hurt them, but they knew it could change.   
After an almost unbearable time, Pluto broke the silence.   
"The two of you are dead." Both of the boys faces blanched.   
They were sure that the gallow was next for them. Pluto   
ignored the frightened looks. "As far as everyone is concerned,   
you were hanged yesterday morning. The people you were no   
longer exist." Her face never changed as the surprise flew   
onto their faces. She had to make sure they would join her,   
and to do that, she had to move fast. "The two of you have   
been chosen. Now you have a choice. You can serve me, or you   
can really go visit the hangman. Those are your only options.   
If you have any questions, ask now. I may answer them."  
  
Ranma and Tomas looked at each other for a long minute   
until they turned back to her. It was Ranma who spoke. "If   
we serve you, what would we be doing."  
  
"You will do whatever I tell you, no questions asked.   
You will serve as spies sometimes, bodyguards at others, and  
decoys in other parts. I will have you do whatever I think you   
must."  
  
The two boys looked at each other a long time. The   
choice wasn't hard, but the emotions of making such a choice   
were. Tomas slowly nodded and they turned back to Pluto.   
Once again it was Ranma who spoke. "We will serve, Lady."   
Pluto never blinked.  
  
  
Author's Notes.  
Well, the new prelude is done. I came up with the idea for   
this fic one night, and I think that it will go better with   
the Twin Black Phoenix title. I am not dropping the original   
plan. I will get around to writing it too. Send me some C&C,   
please. Also, I am looking for pre-readers for all of my   
stories except Immortal. If you want to help, drop me a line.  



	2. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: None of the characters of Ranma ½ and Sailor   
Moon belong to me. I recommend that you don't sue me as I   
don't have the money to even afford a lawyer for 15 minutes.  
  
&&&  
Twin Black Phoenix  
A Ranma ½ and Sailor Moon Crossover  
By Tomas Megerson  
  
Note: This is going to be dark in some places. It will   
be extremely dark at times. If you don't like dark fics,   
then I don't recommend it.  
  
Chapter 1  
  
The ballroom glowed with a liveliness all its own.   
People gathered in groups to discuss any topic that came to   
their minds. Others were seated at the tables enjoying a   
marvelous feast that seemed to have been brought about by   
magic. Queen Serenity's chefs were the best in the Solar   
System. There were still others that were in pairs on the   
dance floor, getting to know each other as music played for   
their ears. At one place a Lady would laugh at some   
unimportant joke, while in another a Gentleman would frown   
at an offhand comment made by his partner. A few of the   
couples sneaked away so they could be alone on the balcony   
and gaze at the Earth that was high in the sky while the   
exchanged vows of love and other such ideas.  
  
And then there was the one. The one who was away   
from everyone else, the one who felt like she didn't belong.   
She had only recently come to the Court of Serenity. It   
hadn't yet been two weeks since she gained the power that   
was requiring her to be present at this ball. It had been   
on her fourteenth birthday that she had gained the mantle   
of Sailor Saturn, Senshi of the Silence. She stood alone   
in a quiet corner of the room, being purposely ignored by   
everyone there. A few of the other Senshi had been over   
to speak with her, but she could tell that none of them   
were comfortable being around her. But it was better than   
the other nobles. They were out right scared of her. All   
because of some thousand year old prophecy. All because   
some long ago old man said that Sailor Saturn would bring   
about the death and destruction of everything. There had   
been Sailor Saturn before this point in history, and she   
was sure that there would be one after her. She wasn't   
going to destroy anything, but no one believed that. All   
of the nobles and the common folk held her in fear thinking   
that she would kill them all while they were asleep one night.  
  
She hated it all. It crossed her mind on more than   
one occasion that she wished someone else bore the mantle she   
now wore. That someone else was the Senshi of Destruction.   
That she hadn't changed, and that she still had her friends.   
That had hurt her the most. Her heart tore every time one   
of her old friends would look at her, cast a fearful glance   
and move quietly away from her. The people that she grew up   
with turned their backs on her and left her in a cold, empty   
void. None of them realized that they were creating that   
void in her by their actions. Her world was a dark and lonely   
place. She feared that it would remain so right up until the   
door to the ball room opened, and two strangers walked in.   
They were both tall, one around six foot and the other a   
couple of inches taller. Both had night black hair with the   
shorter one sporting a pigtail. The taller one's was wild,   
but somehow portrayed a sense of style. As they walked into   
the white crystal room, everyone took notice of them. It   
had to do with their choice of clothes. While everyone was   
in bright colors and rainbow hues, the newcomers were in jet   
black. Their pants, doublets, vests, coats, boots, and gloves   
were all of the deepest ebony. Looking at them reminded some   
of starring into a void. The only things that were not this   
emptiness of color was their skin and their eyes. The   
shorter's eyes were a sapphire blue and the taller's an emerald   
green.  
  
***  
Tomas glanced at Ranma. "I don't see the target   
anywhere."  
  
"Neither do I. He must not be here yet. Find a way   
to get in position. I'll start the sweep. And be careful that   
no one recognizes you. We don't need to start giving   
explanations on why we are here. Recall what the Lady said."  
  
"We are ghosts, unknown to all and controlled by one.   
We answer to one person, but take orders from two. We are on a   
mission and we will not fail."  
  
The two then spoke as one, for the last command of the   
Lady was instilled in their very being. "We are here for the   
future. We will protect that which must come." The two nodded   
at each other and moved to different areas of the ball.  
  
Ranma moved along the wall toward the windows. His   
eyes traced up and down the walls looking for hidden panels   
and secret doors. There were far more than he would have liked.   
(This entire place must be honey coned with passages. We have   
to be careful if we want to pull this off right.) His gaze   
swept the room to take in everyone's place. (None of the   
Senshi are near the queen. Not good, don't they have any   
discipline. They have a job to do and they're enjoying a   
party. How pathetic can they be?) He then searched around   
for his partner. Ranma spied him heading across the room to   
a dark corner. (Why is he heading there?) Ranma looked   
closer and smiled slightly. (Well, Sailor Saturn is here.   
That's a surprise. I've got to admit Tomas came up with a   
good plan this time. I can't wait to see how it plays out.)  
  
***  
Tomas started to move toward Queen Serenity when he   
felt a set of eyes on him. Sweeping the room with an intense   
gaze, he saw a slight shadow in a dark corner. Looking   
closely, he realized who it was. (The princess of Saturn is   
here, huh. Since she took up the mantle I didn't expect her   
to be. And she looks lonely. Well, I can solve that.) A   
slight smile crossed his face. (It will be easier to get to   
the Queen from across the dance floor.) He watched with an   
amused air as he saw her eyes widen as she realized that he   
was heading straight for her. When he got within a few feet   
of her Tomas gave her a sweeping bow fit for any of Royalty.   
"Would you like to dance, Lady Saturn?" Tomas rose from his   
bow to gaze at her with his green eyes.  
  
Saturn found herself lost within their depth. His   
eyes sent a shiver through her as she saw something deep within.   
It was something that she was sure she wasn't supposed to see.   
It was death. But it was not directed at her. All that was   
directed at her was concern and respect. There wasn't any fear   
showing. That was something she hadn't seen since the mantle   
came to her. Without even making a consious decision she nodded   
and took his out stretched hand.  
  
Tomas smiled as he led her on to the floor. (Well, all   
is going right so far. I just hope the Lady is right about this.   
I'd hate to waist the night with at this damn ball.) As the   
music picked up he led her through one of the less complicated   
dances that were currently popular in the Inner System. His   
training by the Lady had been very complete and he could act in   
almost any social situation. The key of the dance that he had   
chosen is that it maneuvered him near Queen Serenity. In the   
space of three minuets he was in place for the operation to begin.   
(Now all we need is the guest of honor to make this party complete.)  
  
Saturn felt as though she was floating through the air.   
She had never thought that she could dance so gracefully. She   
had been an indifferent student of formal dances while on Saturn   
even though she was the princess. This was different, though.   
The young man who had asked her to dance was graceful beyond compare,   
but she knew that he was somehow making her look like she was as   
well versed in the dance as he was. The first song came to an end,   
and a second started. She was surprised that he didn't stop the   
dance but had it flow into something completely new.   
  
Tomas on the other hand, was completely indifferent to the   
dance. He had just spied the target. Using a set of hand signals   
they had developed over the years, Tomas directed Ranma to the   
unlucky fellow who got their attention. He wasn't much to look at,   
a plain sort of face with deep brown hair and pale skin. Not that   
his looks meant much to the two aside from identification.  
  
The attack happened almost to fast for Tomas to see it.   
The dart gun was up and aimed at the Queen in lees then a second.   
Tomas shoved Saturn to the floor and dove between Serenity and the   
assassin. Even as the dart penetrated his shoulder and pierced the   
joint his hand raised to point above the man's head. "BLACK   
FIREBALL!" A giant ball of black flames sped from his hand to slam   
into the arch above the assassin and collapse it before he could   
dive through.  
  
Ranma, moving at the same time Tomas did, sprinted at the   
assassin. Three of what appeared to be glowing claws appeared from   
his hand extending to almost a foot in length. He reached the poor   
fool just as the man turned from the ruined doorway. The three   
claws slid into the man's stomach and appeared on the other side.   
Ranma then shot his hand up as if hitting with an upper cut slicing   
through numerous vital organs and finally the mans head.  
  
Immediately after the man dropped Ranma began going through his pockets   
in a search for identification and something more. Tomas, with the dart still   
imbedded in his shoulder came up to him. "Well? Is it on him?"  
  
Ranma pulled out a piece of paper and glanced over it. He   
nodded his head and glanced at the other black suited young man.   
Reaching up he pulled the dart out and made a quick gesture over   
the area it had been in. "Poison's neutralized. Joint's repaired.   
You'll be fine, if a bit sore. And we got it." Tomas merely nodded   
in thanks and agreement.  
  
By this time the Senshi had recovered from their shock and   
moved toward the two. Both ignored them as they didn't think of   
them as any type of threat to their mission. After a few minuets   
of this, Uranus got annoyed and decided to let them know about it.   
"Who are you and just what happened here?"  
  
Tomas spoke in a quiet voice. "Back off Uranus, if you know   
what's good for you." Angered at this her hand went forward to turn   
him around, only to find herself smashed against the wall and a ball   
of black fire held less than a foot from her face. "Attempt to   
touch me again and I will kill you. I take no pity on the weak   
such as yourself."  
  
From across the room another voice called out. "Enough!" The voice was   
stern, commanding, and hard. The ball of flames disappeared and both boys in   
black stood and came to attention facing the Senshi of Time. As one they spoke   
out.  
  
"Lady Pluto."  
  
She walked up to them and stood there for a moment looking   
them over. Finally she broke the quiet. "Very good. I will see   
you at home." She raised the Time Key and both young men vanished   
into the light. Serenity raised an eyebrow but said nothing. "It   
is a long story, Your Majesty, if you have time."  
  
"Please, Pluto, begin."  
  
***  
  
Ranma and Tomas were lounging in a specious room. They were   
each seated in a comfortable chair in front of a wooden desk. They   
had changed out of their Formal clothing and were in loose jet black   
fighting clothes. Tomas had his feet up on the desk while Ranma's   
were under it. There was a soft snoring from both of them   
indicating sleep. Pluto sighed as she stood in the doorway. (I   
know I told them to relax while here in my palace, but this is   
ridiculous. They should never be this relaxed. And putting his   
feet on my desk! Just who does Tomas think he is?) Sighing once   
more, she moved to sit behind her desk and sat down.  
  
Ranma was the first to awaken. Looking at Pluto for a   
moment, he reached over and tipped Tomas's chair.  
  
"Hey! What the hell did you do that for?"  
  
Ranma sighed. "Get up, Lady Pluto's here. And you   
shouldn't put your feet on her desk." Tomas picked up his chair and   
sat back down. Pluto looked at the two before starting.  
  
"What went wrong in there? This was supposed to be a silent   
mission. Tomas, you were to spot the target, and Ranma, you were to   
capture him, ALIVE. What happened?"  
  
"Well, Tomas here decided to change the plan. If he had   
gone with what we agreed to this wouldn't have happened."  
  
"Hey Ranma, I did my part! How can you complain that I   
enjoyed myself some too?"  
  
"You were dancing with Saturn, and then you threatened   
Uranus. We weren't supposed to be near ANY of the Senshi. We've   
been exposed!"  
  
"Hey, all they know is that a couple of guys who work for   
Setsuna stopped an assassination attempt by some unknown guy. They   
didn't get our names, so why does it matter.  
  
Pluto gazed over the two. She didn't want to do this, but   
the Queen had requested. "I have your next missions lined up for   
you. These are at Serenity's request, so don't complain."  
  
Ranma raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean by missions?   
That's more than one."  
  
Pluto looked them over. They were her greatest pieces of   
work. Relaxed when not threatened by anything and deadly serious   
when on a mission. Each of them had two different people inside.   
"The two of you are going to be split up. It will most likely last   
until the Reckoning. There may be a mission or two that will   
require both of you, but it is unlikely. Ranma, as soon as were   
done here you will be getting on a flight for Saturn. Queen   
Serenity has informed me that the people of Saturn are growing   
worried about their Senshi. We all know the Prophecy and they   
fear that it is beginning to take place. You will stand watch   
over Karinna until I say otherwise. You are not to let her know   
that you are there if at all possible. I have had you enrolled   
in her current school as an exchange student from here."  
  
Ranma's face twisted with disgust. "Yuck, school? I've   
already gone through your college courses, why do I need to go to   
high school again?"  
  
"Because the person you are assigned to watch over will be   
there for seven hours everyday, and you are too young to be   
assigned a position in anything else in the school. Don't worry,   
you should be fine."  
  
"I suppose that you have a cover identity for me?"  
  
Pluto looked him square in the eyes. "I did not have   
enough time to do anymore than set you up to get past customs.   
You're going to have to handle the rest yourself, Ranma." A smirk   
crossed her face. "Maybe you should have paid better attention when   
those computer lessons were given? I wish that I could be there   
to watch you try to hack into Saturn's computer database. It should   
be interesting,"  
  
"Excuse me for interrupting, Setsuna, but why did you choose   
Ranma for this and not me?"  
  
"Because of two things, Tomas. First, it would have been   
near impossible to clear your weapons for the Saturn Customs Agents.   
The second was your little dance with Saturn. She is much more   
likely to remember your face than Ranma's if she even saw his. I   
have another job for you?"  
  
"Oh, and just what is it?"  
  
An evil look came across her face. "You've been assigned   
guard over Princess Serenity."  
  
"WHAT!!!" Shock was written all over his face. Ranma, on   
the other hand, was cracking up. "Why am I supposed to watch over   
her? That's the Inner Senshi's job!"  
  
"Your not the only one who is upset by this, Tomas. The   
Queen has also requested that I remain at the palace with you.   
She doesn't feel that you alone are capable to guard her daughter   
even with the Inner Senshi there. I was barely able to convince her   
not to strip the Outer Planets of their Senshi as well for her extra   
guard duty. The attack earlier has seriously shaken her up."  
  
Ranma was still chuckling at the thought of Tomas at the   
Court of Serenity. "Well, I guess that going to school won't be   
so bad after all. At least I won't have to sit through boring   
palace balls and functions. And I won't have to put up with any   
of the other Senshi, either. I really feel bad for you, Tomas."  
  
Pluto sighed. She was going to miss the banter of her two   
wards, though she had stopped thinking of them as that a long time   
ago. They were the only friends that she truly had, and the only   
ones she could fully trust. When the three were alone, all shells   
were dropped and they all relaxed. Now they were going to have to   
be on constant guard.  
  
"The two of you go get packed. Tomas, we're leaving as soon   
as Ranma's gone. I want you in your full battle gear. You're going   
to be presented to the court, and I want to make a lasting   
impression right from the start. Ranma, I'll see you off." The   
two got up gave her a small bow and left.  
  
----------------------------------------------------------------------  
  
Ranma gazed out the window of the transport as Pluto dropped   
away. (Such a barren place. It's a wonder that anything can even   
survive this far from the sun. It seems so black and lonely here   
in space. I'm going to be so far from home.) After the atmosphere   
was breached Ranma released his safety straps and headed toward   
the cockpit. Upon entering he approached the captain of the vessel.   
At the sound of foot steps, the captain turned and saluted his   
passenger. Ranma returned it lazily. "Captain, could you clear a   
long range terminal for my use? I need to make some arrangements   
for when we arrive on Saturn."  
  
"Of course, My Lord." He turned toward the communications   
man. "Lieutenant, clear out so our passenger can use your   
equipment. He has business to take care of." The Lieutenant   
obediently moved from his main station to a back up one over by the   
weapons command. Ranma, in turn, took over the console.  
  
(Now, lets see what I can do about getting somewhere to   
live.) He started typing into the console bringing up a listing   
of available apartments in the Shallang district of the capital.   
(Hmm, that's nice. Two bed, full bath, and a kitchen. Oh, that   
one's just as good. I wonder, what would be the best?) He   
continued to leaf through until one caught his eye. (Here we go!   
One bed, full bath, full kitchen, a mile from the palace and a half   
mile from the school. It'll do nicely. Now lets see ... THAT MUCH!)  
The price of the apartment shocked Ranma so much that he started to   
mumble out loud. The pilot, who was close enough to hear a bit,   
only caught some stuff about extortion and that he was glad he   
wasn't going to be paying for it. The price of the apartment shocked   
Ranma so much that he started to mumble out loud. The pilot, who   
was close enough to hear a bit, only caught some stuff about   
extortion and that he was glad he wasn't going to be paying for it.   
(Well, I've got a place to live now, so I can worry about other   
things later. Getting through customs will be a breeze. Have more   
than enough clothes, though I need to pick up a uniform for school.   
Man, that's disgusting, me in a school uniform. I don't need to   
stick out, though.)  
  
Ranma gazed out the view port as the planet Neptune floated   
past in the sea of stars. Only a few hours left, and he would be   
starting another mission. (Sigh, I wonder how Tomas is handling   
his end. It must be pretty boring.)  
  
--------------------------------------------------------------------  
  
Boring was not a word Tomas would have chosen at that   
moment. He was more inclined to go with his brain turning into   
mush. The lower court functionary just couldn't get it through his   
brain that Tomas's sword wasn't going anywhere without the wielder.   
(And I thought paper work in customs was bad. Why did Setsuna leave   
me to deal with this crap.) Finally he had had enough and leveled   
a stare at the little man who was annoying him. It was the same   
stare that he had given Sailor Uranus a few hours before. The stare   
seemed to say 'I can tear you to shreds and the only thing stopping   
me from doing so is the mess you'd make on the carpet.' A dark   
stain appeared on the functionary's pants, and the man quickly left   
to go change. Tomas smiled slightly in satisfaction. It was then   
that the door opened. His face went hard, showing the warrior that   
lay underneath the young flesh. A royal guardsman motioned him to   
enter the throne room.  
  
It was his first time entering the Grand Hall. As he   
stepped through the door, his eyes started looking for all entrances   
and crevasses large enough to hide a person. Unlike the ballroom,   
this was well designed. There was no place that his eyes could see   
that an assassin could hide, and there were only two doors into the   
room. It would be easy to defend against attacks. He then swept   
his eyes over the people.  
  
There were hundreds in the room. Lords and Ladies from   
every planet were in attendance and there were others besides.   
Tomas was sure that a number of them were rich merchants who had   
gained enough power to be present. As his eyes moved forward, he   
thanked Pluto for all the training she had given him. It kept him   
from groaning aloud. All of the Senshi were in attendance. He   
ignored the look of surprise on Saturn's face and the sneer on   
Uranus's. He was better than that. He looked to gage the other   
Senshi's reactions to his presence. He could easily see that none   
of them were really happy with him being there, but they could see   
his strength. He was flowing across the floor with a grace that   
none of them possessed, and his movements were like a tiger about   
to strike. He radiated power to all those who could sense it.   
Even to those without the abilities of a well-trained warrior, he  
was a sight to behold.  
  
Tomas's armor was jet black. It was as though the void of   
a black hole had been melded onto his armor. It was tight fitting,   
almost skin tight. Everyone could tell that he had well developed   
muscles. The armor went up to his cheeks and then across his nose   
so that only the area around his eyes could be seen. The only   
color upon it were a pair of night blue bracers over the forearms   
of his armor, and a white sword hilt that was over his right   
shoulder.  
  
As he approached Queen Serenity's throne his mask seemed to   
melt back so that his entire head and neck were bare. He knelt at   
the base of the raised circle her throne was on and bowed his head.   
"Your Majesty requested my presence." He was genuinely surprised   
when she gave him a warm smile.  
  
"So you are one of the Knights of Pluto. I can tell that   
you a extremely powerful, perhaps more so than even my Senshi.   
Your training must have been hard."  
  
"It was worth it, Your Majesty." (What's with this Knight   
of Pluto crap. I'm not even a soldier, heck Pluto's Military Staff   
doesn't even know me and Ranma exist. And are they going to be   
upset when they find out.)  
  
"I requested your presence for an important reason. Do you   
know what it is?"  
  
"No Your Majesty, I did not inquire. It is not my place to   
question your actions. (At least, not to your face.)  
  
"I want you to take command of the Planetary Knights. There   
are two Knights for each planet. Serenity has informed me of your   
abilities and I feel that you would be able to do much good with   
the position. Will you take up this burden?"  
  
Tomas ignored the mummer of the people around him. He had   
to have time to think about what he was going to do. He didn't   
want to be placed upon a spot of authority. It was his nature to   
work in the shadows when he could. But he couldn't form a rift   
between himself and the Queen either. Setsuna had been very   
specific with that before they had arrived. (I hate this, I really   
do. This is going to make my life hell, but I've no choice in the   
matter.) He glanced out of the edge of his eye at Sailor Pluto,   
who slightly nodded. "I accept, Your Majesty. I hope that I can   
do you proud.  
  
"I am sure that you will do just fine, Captain."  
---------------------------------------------------------------------  
  
Ranma sighed as he stood in line at customs. (I hate this,   
I really do. Why can't they ever make these things go smoother?)   
He adjusted his pack and walked his two steps forward as someone   
else got through. (Only four more to go.) "Sigh." He checked his   
watch for what seemed to be the hundredth time. (Wow, I've only   
been in this line for two hours. I guess its going quicker than   
normal.)  
  
  
Finally, after another fifteen minuets, Ranma had made it up  
to the customs counter. He smiled at the young woman as he handed   
her his passport. (I hope the name Setsuna set me up with is in   
there. This will be pretty embarrassing if it isn't.) The customs   
agent handed him back his passport.  
  
"I have a few questions I need to ask you."  
  
"Go ahead."  
  
"Do you have anything to declare while you're coming in?"  
  
"Yes, I have brought my family katana with me. I have the   
proper documents if you need them." (Even though it's marked on my   
passport.)  
  
"That won't be necessary. Are you carrying anything given   
to you by a stranger?"  
  
"No."  
  
"How long will you be remaining here on Saturn?"  
  
"Indefinite. I'll be attending my last year of high school   
here, and I may decided to enter an academy here afterwards as   
well." The agent went over her information again and then waved him   
through.   
  
Ranma smiled as he walked through the halls of the   
spaceport. Saturn's intense cloud cover gave everything a unique   
lighting scheme that caused him to look at things in a new light.   
He pulled his brown cloak tighter over his clothes. (No need to   
let people know things that they shouldn't, like my personal body   
armor. My apartment should be ready by now. I'll stop by there   
first and get the papers and deeds done with and then go and do   
some shopping.) His stomach chose that precise moment to make  
itself known. The growling got him some strange looks and he  
amended his plans to include dinner first.  
  
****  
  
Ranma looked around his barren apartment and sighed. "I  
wish the furniture would come sooner than it will. Three days is  
a long time to go without anything to sit on but the floor. Oh,  
well, time to go to work." Ranma walked over to his closet and  
removed a suit of thin black material.  
  
After removing his clothes he pulled it on. The suit fit him  
like a second layer of skin. All of his muscles could be seen. He  
then reached beyond what the small closet should have allowed and  
removed a harder, though still thin, set of armor. Pulling this suit  
over the previous one, he moved toward his balcony door. Ranma paused  
for a moment and concentrated. The hard suit, which had been blocky  
and ungainly before seemed to flow so that it too fit him like another  
layer of skin. Around his forearms bracers the color of blood seemed  
to flow from the blackness. From his shoulders came a helm that  
couldn't be justly called such a thing. It formed around his head  
making him look like a bird of prey more than a man. From the face,  
a pair of midnight blue eyes seemed to open up. With this armor he  
could survive even the majority of the Sailor Senshi's attacks.  
Walking to the end of his balcony, he hopped lightly on to the rail,  
and then jumped to the roof of the building across the street.  
Landing without a sound, Ranma proceeded to head to the palace of the  
royal family of Saturn.  
  
Upon reaching the palace he noticed two things. First, it was lightly  
guarded. (No real surprises there since the Senshi of Creation and  
Destruction normally lives here. You'd have to be a fool to attack this  
place.) The second thing he noticed was that the wing where the Royal  
family lived was completely dark. (That wouldn't be unless they weren't  
here. The servants would make sure of it. Guess this means I get a  
few days with no duty.) With out the one he was assigned to watch over  
on planet, Ranma headed back to his apartment to get some sleep. After  
all, he had school in the morning.  
  
Author's Notes:  
There you go, the complete Chapter 1. Let me hear from you. I want to  
know what you think of it.  
  



	3. Chapter 2

Twin Black Phoenix  
A Ranma ½ and Sailor Moon Crossover  
By Tomas Megerson  
  
Note: This is going to be dark in some places. It will be extremely   
dark at times. In fact, I suggest you think of this as a Dark Fic. I   
don't have plans to kill off the main characters (too many times) but   
that'll probably change. If you don't like dark fics, but then again,   
this may be the fic that gets you to like them, so give it a shot anyway.  
  
Chapter 2  
  
  
Ranma looked into the mirror once more and sighed. He couldn't   
stand the uniform. The navy blue jacket and pants looked good with the   
tie and white shirt, but he would have preferred black. And looser   
fitting. And offering more protection. And somewhere to put his katana.   
And a lot of other things as well. If he could have had his way he   
would have just worn his armor and cloak to school. He couldn't stand   
out, though. This was a black ops mission. He couldn't walk around   
letting people know who he was. He ran his fingers through his hair   
once more and gave the image in the mirror a killer smile. He grimaced   
and then looked at the terminal screen on the wall.  
  
Ranma, your background for school is as follows:   
Your parents transferred you because of some   
women problems. Your idiot father engadged you   
to three different girls. You can't stand any   
of them, but they are all madly in love with you.   
Your mother took pity on your problem and has   
sent you away to finish your education. It is   
her hope that while you are away you will choose   
one of them. You, on the other hand, are looking   
for a girl that you like so you can marry her and   
get the others off of your back. You are a minor   
noble in my court, so you don't need to worry   
about getting into the palace if you need to.   
Should Tomas get a chance to visit you, you and he   
were sparring partners for the past three years.   
Together you founded your own school of the art.   
This will give you more creditable defense should   
someone recognize him (which is most certain since   
he will be spending a large amount of time in   
court.) Good luck, Ranma. I'll let you know when   
a more specific mission comes up.  
Setsuna  
  
"Great so I'm some sort of girl swamped noble. At least she   
didn't tell me to keep my martial arts a secret." He glanced at the   
clock. "Great now I don't have time for breakfast. Thanks a lot Lady   
Pluto." He headed out the door and made his way toward school.  
  
****  
At that moment, Pluto was getting out of her own bed. She   
looked at her surroundings and sighed. She had never really liked her   
quarters in the Royal Moon Palace. They were always so dark and gloomy.   
She had to keep up appearances, though. She had to make Queen Serenity   
believe that she was under her sway. It was hard, most of the time, but   
she managed, somehow. Knowing that she couldn't stay in bed all day,   
she slowly got up and pulled on her robe. She opened her bedroom door   
only to stop after a single step. "What in the..?"  
  
Tomas looked up from where he was sitting. He was dressed in a   
solid black shirt, a black doublet, black pants, and his black gloves.   
She couldn't see them, but she was sure that he had his black boots on   
as well. The only color once more was his white sword hilt and his   
green eyes. She came back to reality as he raised an eyebrow at her.   
"Are you alright, Lady Pluto?"  
  
"I'm sorry, Captain, I wasn't paying attention. What did you   
say?" She smiled slightly at the look of discuss that came across his   
face as she used his newly acquired title.  
  
"I said that the Queen has requested us for breakfast in a half   
an hour. Would you like me to make excuse for you not coming, or would   
you prefer to join us?"  
  
Setsuna sighed as she new what would happen if she refused.   
"I'll be joining you, of course. Give me fifteen minutes to freshen   
up." She turned and headed into the bathroom for a quick shower and to   
get dressed. As the water ran over her skin, Pluto shook her head in   
disappointment of herself. (I should have known that Tomas would be   
here. I wonder if he got any sleep last night. He doesn't tend to be   
one to trust others. He probably spent all night watching my door to   
make sure no one hurt me.) She turned the water off and dried herself   
with a quick heat spell. After pulling on one of her royal gowns, she   
left the room and approached Tomas. "Shall we go?" Tomas took her arm   
and the two left for breakfast. (I wonder how Ranma's doing?)  
  
***  
"I am Ranma Saotome. It is a pleasure to meet you all." Ranma   
gave a bow to his class and tried to ignore the whispers of the girls.   
He had more important things to do while on Saturn then get involved   
with a girl. His eyes swept over the class and across the windows, of   
which there were too many for his taste. He headed toward the seat that   
he had barely heard the teacher assign him to and sat down. With his   
mind still going through the different ways that he could get an   
assassin team into the school undetected he started answering the   
teacher's questions. He wasn't about to play the part of a dumb jock.   
After about a half-hour of this he finally got annoyed enough to stop   
the process. "Sensei, if your not going to be doing anything relevant   
for today besides try to grill me on stuff I learned years ago, then   
why don't you let the rest of the class leave. I'm sure they wouldn't   
mind." The rest of the class nodded vigorously to no avail.  
  
"Forgive me class, I seemed to have gotten carried away. Turn   
your books to page 189 and answer the questions on pages 197 and 198."   
And so the class continued uneventful. In fact nothing exciting   
happened until the fourth class of the day, self-defense. All people   
of Saturn were to be part of the military, at least reserves. So   
starting in high school a class of self-defense was taught for one   
semester. After that everyone would go to the military academy for   
one year and then choose to stay in the active military or enter the   
reserves. Now Ranma was being forced to listen to one of those reserve   
officers talk about how to launch into an assault bare handed, and   
getting it all wrong.  
  
When the teacher was finally done and asked for questions Ranma   
raised his hand. "Yes, Saotome?"  
  
"You don't actually expect that to work, do you? I mean, I   
could've stop that on your first change through when I was thirteen."  
  
The teacher didn't like having one of his students talk back to   
him. After all these kids hadn't had any true training yet, and they   
all thought they knew what they were talking about. "Do you want to   
prove that, Saotome? You're more than welcome to try." Ranma just gave   
him a slight smile and stood up.  
  
It wasn't a fair fight. In fact, you couldn't even say that it   
was a fair slaughter. On the teacher's first punch, Ranma slid around   
him and gave a jab to the man's elbow, causing it to lock in place. A   
knee followed that to the gut and an elbow smash to the head. The   
teacher was out in less than three seconds. Ranma ignored the surprised   
looks of his classmates and headed for the shower muttering under his   
breath.. "God, a bet Tomas is having a better time than this. I knew   
it would be bad, but this is ridiculous."  
  
****  
Tomas calmly sat outside the dressing room of the princess of   
the moon kingdom. To everyone who might have walked by (her mother and   
a couple of the Senshi) he appeared to be a calm mask of steel and ice.   
Inside, though...  
  
(DOES THE TORTURE EVER END!!!! I've been here for the past two   
hours just so she can get ready to go to some damned sermon by Mars!   
This is ridiculous! I've never been so insulted in my life. Maybe I   
should just say screw it to the time stream and kill the little brat   
now! It'll save me a whole lot of pain, that's for sure!)  
  
Finally, after what seemed like ages, the Princess came out.   
She was dressed in what seemed to be a nightgown along with a thin   
tiara. When she asked Tomas how she looked he just shrugged.  
  
"Come on, how do I look? I want to know what you think!" She   
spun around for him.  
  
Tomas just shrugged again. "I am not here o advise you on   
fashion, I'm here to protect you. If you want to know how you look   
then ask one of your friends."  
  
"You're no fun! Well, if your going to be that way, then come   
along. I don't want to be late for the sermon." A hungry look entered   
her eyes. Tomas took quick note of it and began to go over what it   
could be. Pluto never told him what happened at one of Mars's sermons,   
just that it would be bad. If she said something would be bad he made   
sure to listen. He followed Princess Serenity out the door and towards   
the Church of Mars.  
  
As the two approached the building an uneasy feeling began to settle   
over him. He couldn't tell whether it was from the Church or from the   
Princess. Both of them seemed to be radiating ungodly amounts of   
negative energy. He began to look around for demon gateways to begin   
popping up because of it all. He couldn't even comprehend how such   
vast amounts of evil could be totally ignored by the general populace.   
Behind his mask he grimaced as he realized how sheltered an upbringing   
Setsuna had given him and Ranma. They may have killed in cold blood,   
fought in battles were the losers were eaten, and betray those who had   
trusted them for he greater good, but this was insane. As he stepped   
through the doorway of the temple he almost gagged on the sheer amount   
of evil the perpetrated everything. (When I get out of here, I'm going   
to have to give Ranma a report on all this. Everything is worse than   
what Setsuna told us. He's going to be relieved that we're on the   
right side. After that ball yesterday, neither of us was truly sure.)   
Tomas took a position along the back wall of the church and watched as   
the Senshi of Mars strode in with an unearthly grace to begin her   
sermon.  
  
****  
  
Ranma smiled slightly as the girl shyly sat down next to him.   
Since the self-defense class most people had been avoiding him. They   
didn't really want to know what could make some one so young such a   
formidable fighter. The news of his quick (and painful) defeat of the   
instructor spread like fire through the building. The man had been an   
unquestionable bully, even if he did get results. Since most people   
had taken to leaving him alone he had decided to enjoy his lunch under   
a cherry tree that was along side the building. The transplanted tree   
had an unusual tint in its flowers thanks to the cloud cover above.   
In all, Ranma thought it made its looks more exotic rather then detach   
from the beauty. (Kinda like this girl. Interesting eyes, haven't   
seen golden before. Almost like a cat's, now that I think about it.)   
He decided rather quickly that a silent lunch would be pretty boring   
and so decided to strike up a conversation. "Hello there, beautiful,   
I'm Ranma. You are?"  
  
Her eyes widened with surprise at his words. She hadn't   
expected him to acknowledge her presence much less start a conversation   
with her. It took her a few moments to process the question he had   
asked.   
  
Ranma, for his part, just sat there and gave her a smile that almost   
made her heart stop. Amusement ran through him as his Ki readings told   
him of her increased heart rate and breathing. He forgot how much fun   
it was to play such games with the opposite sex. They always thought   
that they were the ones in charge, but all you had to do was look at   
them the right way and it would send there minds into a null zone. He   
leaned forward slightly as though he was hanging on the breath of her   
response.  
  
The attention she was getting just made the girl more nervous but   
eventually she managed to stutter out a name. "S-S-S-Salina."  
  
"That's quite a beautiful name, Salina, though it hardly does you   
justice." Ranma smiled a bit more as he watched a rosy blush come   
across her face. "So, Salina, where are you from? Your name doesn't   
really sound Saturnine."  
  
"Well, m-my father was from the Moon, originally. Where are   
you from, if you don't mind, that is."  
  
Ranma let his eyes bore into hers for a moment before he   
answered. While Salina blushed as some not too clean thoughts entered   
her mind, Ranma struggled to remember what he had read this morning.   
He didn't want to start giving out conflicting stories. "Well, Salina,   
I'm from Pluto. My father was a Vise-Count in Lady Pluto's court   
before he made some mistakes with my life. Mother wanted to help me   
out of them, so she got me transferred here a few days ago. According   
to her, I now have my father's title. Not much good, but its nice to   
know that I've a steady income." (Hmm, maybe I said too much. I'm   
sure that the story I just told will get around in the rumor mill.)   
He looked at her surprised face as she stared at him. While it wasn't   
the first time he had been stared at by some girls, it was the first   
time he saw such awe in one's face. "What's the matter? Are you   
alright?"  
  
"Do you really know the Lady Pluto? Everyone says that she's   
so secretive."  
  
(So that's what this is about) "I've only met her once that I   
can recall, and that was after the problems my father created. She   
said she wanted to know how I felt about everything. I am good friends   
with one of her higher placed members of court, though. He said he'd   
come visit me at some point, so if you want I can introduce you to him.   
He says he knows her quite well. I'm sure he wouldn't mind if you   
asked him some questions, Salina."  
  
Salina blushed some more at that. It was hard for her to get   
people to talk to her. Everyone at the school knew how her family was,   
and they all thought that the curse led to her as well. She struggled   
to fight with the pain of being alone everyday. When your younger   
sister is the Senshi of destruction it tends to cloud peoples judgement   
of you. She had so much more that she wanted to ask, but then the bell   
rang signaling the end of lunch.   
  
Ranma calmly got up and gave her a short wave before heading into the   
building. (She looked familiar. Maybe one of the Royal Family. I   
think it would be good to get a friendship going with her. It could   
give me more open access to the palace.) He sighed as he headed toward   
his next class. It would be a long day for him, and an even longer   
night. If Salina was whom he thought then that would mean the Royal   
Family of Saturn was back from their visit to the Moon. That in itself   
would mean his job had just started. For now, though, he had to get to   
class.  
  
****  
  
Tomas splashed more cold water onto his face and looked up at   
the mirror. His eyes traced the long scar that was visible now that he   
was not wearing a shirt. It started at the bottom of his ribcage under   
his left lung and came up almost to his heart. Had Ranma been a tenth   
of a second late to his side that would have been the end of him. He   
was lucky in that one fight. He was wishing that his luck would have   
just held out. He had the feeling that he was going to learn a lot of   
bad things about people while he served Serenity. Tomas closed his   
eyes and once again splashed cold water onto his face. Looking up and   
into his own eyes he sagged with a weariness that shouldn't have been   
there. He stared into his own green eyes and as he looked into the   
black centers he seemed to be transported back to the early evening.  
  
He could smell the blood again, and the musk odor coming from   
the temple. He closed his eyes trying to block the images that were   
appearing to no avail. It didn't help him any. He could still see   
Princess Serenity, the girl who had been asking him about her dress but   
hours before, on the ground lapping up the red blood like a dog getting   
its water from the floor. He watched in his mind's eye as she raised   
her lips to the flow coming off of the table allowing it to gather in   
her mouth and run down her throat. He stared in shock as he saw her   
once more covered in the red life of the poor victim embrace the   
priestess of Mars like a lover. Tomas felt the pain enter his body as   
he realized that he had no ability to stop the atrocity that had taken   
place. Collapsing to the floor he felt tears run down his cheeks as   
the pain and disgust he felt over powered him. And he felt gentle arms   
encircle him and heard a soft voice whisper to him that everything   
would be all right.  
  
Tomas turned and buried his face into the shoulder of Setsuna.   
He felt that sobs wrack his body and the shivers run down his spine.   
He had known that the Senshi were bad, but for them to be so horrible,   
it was beyond his grasp. And as he cried, his mind struggled. It   
tried to come to grips with the fact that Setsuna had known such things   
were happening for years, and that she had to stand by and watch, not   
able to do anything. Tomas came to grips that Setsuna was a lot   
stronger than he thought he could ever be.  
  
For her part, Setsuna sat there on the floor with Tomas. She   
just held him, and whispered soft words of understanding. Her own   
heart filled with grief with what had happened. She had never seen it   
so bad as this, before. The sermons of Mars were always evil, and   
always brought pain to her, but they had never been like this. She was   
almost considering speeding up the timetable. There was a way to do  
it, but she wasn't sure that she was ready to go that far quite yet.   
She felt Tomas start to pull away from her and she let him go. He   
turned to face her and they stayed like that for sometime, sitting on   
the bathroom floor looking at each other. Finally the silence got too   
much and she decided to break it. "Do you wish to talk about it? I   
know it was bad, worse than any I had ever been witness to. I'm here   
for you, Tomas."  
  
He sighed and shook his head. "I do, Setsuna, but not with   
you. I'm going to send Ranma a message and let him know just what   
happened here. He needs to know how bad everything really is. We've   
speculated, you know. About what could be so bad that would cause you   
to take us in. This was far beyond anything we came up with, though."   
He slowly got up and offered her his hand. Graciously she took it,   
and looked him in the eyes.   
  
The pain was still there, she could tell. It was being   
covered up, though. Already his tear-streaked face was a mask of   
determination. She smiled and then started to giggle at the contrast   
of his emotions. When he raised an eyebrow in question all she could   
do was point at his face. Glancing in the mirror he saw what he looked   
like and he too began to laugh. Finally she had gotten it out of her   
system and switched back to a more serious attitude. "Get cleaned up   
and dressed. Dinner is only around a half an hour away. We do not   
want to be late. And wear your good clothes, there's another ball   
tonight. Some Earth ambassador has come to pay his respects before   
going on to Venus." After he nodded she left the bathroom to wait for   
another night of pointless parties to begin.  
  
****  
Ranma sighed as he shut the door to his apartment. School had   
actually been a challenge for him during the second have of the day.   
He may have had incredible amounts of knowledge in most of the courses,   
but when it came to the laws and regulations of planatary treaties he   
couldn't keep awake long enough to learn it. So he had one course   
where he would learn something. Well, two courses if he wanted to   
count the computer training class. He had been as indifferent to the   
computers as he was to treaties. Tomas usually handled setting up   
their missions, so he never worried about it. It never occurred to him   
that they would get split up. (I should have paid attention to Setsuna   
after all.) He glanced at his terminal and blinked at the message left   
on it. The black bird hates the fire. "So, problems with Mars, huh.   
Can't wait to hear about it." Ranma moved to his bedroom and opened   
his closet. He removed the jamming equipment and the   
encryption/decryption device. After setting them up and starting them   
he got the message. It was rather long, which was unusual for Tomas.   
He usually got right to the point.  
  
Ranma,  
Things are a lot worse than we think. I'm sorry for   
laying this burden on you, but I need to share this   
with someone who understands, and Setsuna already knows   
it. This is going to be hard, and I hate leaving you   
with my demons to cope with, too. Anyway, I had to   
accompany Princess Serenity to a sermon led by Lady   
Mars today. It was unlike anything I had ever felt.   
The first thought that came to my mind was the   
overpowering stench of evil in the place. The temple   
just reeked of it. Then Mars came in wearing black   
robes. That caught my eye first, but soon to follow   
was the unearthly way she moved. It was a grace I had   
never witnessed in her before, almost like she was   
floating. When she reached the alter, she spoke some   
words in a language I didn't understand. Then she   
dropped her robe. She had nothing on undernieth, and   
I mean NOTHING. I was in the back of the place, but I   
was sure that she didn't have a hair on her body except   
for her head. There was nothing appealing about it   
though, in fact it made me frightened about what was   
going on.  
  
Ranma blinked a few times. (This actually made Tomas   
frightened. What the hell happened in there.)  
  
She said some more words and a door in the back opened   
up. Out of it came two more women, also without   
clothing. Between them they carried a child no more   
than nine or ten years old. It was a girl (her cries   
allowed me to make that notice). They strapped her to   
the alter. Mars said a few more words in that strange   
language, and then tore the poor child's clothes off.   
After that one of the naked cohorts handed her a large,   
curved knife. It was then that I realized what was   
happening.  
  
"A sacrifice. That poor child. Those bastards! They killed   
that poor child."  
  
After her heart was cut out and tossed onto the fire,   
the truly disgusting things began to happen. Mars   
cupped her hands and drove them into the whole in the   
corpse's chest. She brought forth the red blood and  
drank it down. She did it twice more. Then I had '  
noticed that the others in the temple were ...   
'entertaining' themselves if you know what I mean.   
All but the Princess. She was just as naked as Mars   
and was with her by the corpse. Princess Serenity   
would lick what ever blood was on Mars's body off of   
her. When there was no more left she began to drink   
the fallen blood off of the floor. When she ran out   
of that she moved to what was on the table. While her   
mouth was still filled with blood she embraced Mars   
like a lover. Then they... no, I don't want to talk   
about it. I'm sure that you get the picture. The   
worst part of all, Ranma, was that I couldn't do   
anything about it. If I took any action our whole   
purpose would have been thwarted. Setsuna told me   
that this was the worst that she had ever seen it at.   
She was watching from the Gates. I'm sorry that I had   
to tell you all this, but you needed to know. Watch   
Saturn carefully. If she's fallen too we'll be in   
deep trouble. Keep safe, my brother.  
Tomas  
  
Ranma leaned back in his chair and sighed. He had never thought   
it could be anything that bad. Pluto had told them that things were   
dark in the Kingdom, but she never mentioned such evil to them. He   
would definitely have to keep an eye on Saturn, though. He couldn't   
let someone as powerful as her to join the Senshi in their evil. If it   
came down to it, he might have to kill Karinna. That wasn't something   
that he looked forward too, but it wasn't as though he had a choice.   
Ranma knew his job, and as he glanced at his clock, he realized it was   
time for him to go to work.  
  
It had taken him almost two hours to get through the message   
Tomas had sent and to come to grips with his own feelings about it.   
Even as he moved to his bedroom Ranma struggled to get his mind in   
order. (First priority is to scout the palace. I need to know if   
anything wrong is happening in there. Second is to locate Saturn's   
room. When I know where she is I'll be able to keep a close watch on   
her.) He finished sliding his black armor into place and watched as it   
slid back into his skin. He then sent the mental command to have his   
arm guards form and then had them join his armor. Still gazing at the   
mirror, Ranma ran his hand through his hair getting it back into shape.   
Looking over his casual clothes, he nodded once and headed for the   
door. (First dinner, the work. Guess I'll be wearing my armor from   
now on, too. I was almost use to not having it, too.)  
  
****  
  
Tomas gazed into the mirror as he waited to be announced. Once   
more Tomas was dressed in his total black dress clothes. His black   
hair was still unruly, and still had that strange sense of style, as   
though it would take hours for it to get that way, but for him it was   
natural. His face no longer bore any of the distress that it had   
earlier in the evening. His emerald eyes had pierced the soul of more   
than one person who had passed him that night, and he never let an   
emotion cross his face. He was as calm and cool as the woman next to   
him was.   
  
Setsuna was dressed in a dark green evening gown that portrayed a   
modest cut. It wasn't her style to be daring in the first place, but   
it didn't matter. The cut somehow made her more attractive than the   
women who were flaunting their bodies. Her dark green hair was still   
in its normal straight cut, but brought about a sense of regality to   
her that only the Queen herself possessed. Her face was impassive and   
held even less emotion than Tomas. Her red eyes gazed over everything   
as if she was watching the stream of time flow by every person. There   
was no one who would meet her gaze in the entire palace.  
  
Well, no one except Tomas. Right now he was looking in her eyes,   
and he was worried. There were times when he would see her and wonder   
whether she saw everything as time effected it. Did she see everyone   
dead and the buildings destroyed, or was there a dark shadow that held   
her gaze and refused to let go? He never could tell what was there,   
but the sadness he saw at times was almost too much to bare. He owed   
her his life, and he wasn't about to forget that.  
  
Both snapped back to reality when the door to the ballroom opened   
up and a guard stepped out. "If you two are ready, we will announce   
you, now." Pluto nodded slowly and the guard headed back into the   
room.  
  
Tomas took Setsuna's arm and slowly walked with her to the door.   
As they approached it, Setsuna leaned up so she could whisper in   
Tomas's ear. "How would you like a little revenge on Princess Serenity   
and Sailor Mars?" At his shocked expression she actually smiled   
slightly. "Prince Endymion is here and he and the Princess are sure to   
try to get the spotlight. How would you feel to steal it from them?   
I know it's petty, but its all we can do right now. Besides, I haven't   
danced at a ball in years." Tomas's only response was a slight smile.  
  
****  
  
"RYUUJIN SHUURAI!" The bright lightning tore from Ranma's open   
hand slamming into one of the dark men. He didn't know who they were,   
but it didn't really matter. They weren't supposed to be in the palace   
so he was going to eliminate them. He had been approaching the palace   
cautiously when he heard sudden sounds of fighting. After summoning   
his armor to its full covering he slid through the shadows and on to   
the palace grounds. What he saw surprised him. A dozen black garbed   
figures were attacking the palace. The Royal Saturn Guards had tried   
to stop them, but they all fell within the first five minutes. Ranma's   
orders were to protect Sailor Saturn, so he wasn't about to let these   
people get into the palace. His opening attack blew the chest out of   
one of them. The other 11 turned to face their new foe.  
  
"TENCHI YOUGEKI!" A bright aurora of blue and red energy   
surrounded Ranma as he moved into the battle. His speed was like   
nothing ever seen before. In the first minute of the fight three more   
of the enemies fell to him dead. Huffing from the drain, Ranma slowly   
turned to face his opponents again. He never expected them to be as   
good as they were. If he had known he wouldn't have used the Heaven   
and Earth Assault, it was too draining on the body. HE had to kill   
them all before Saturn showed up. He was sure that she was their   
target, and the Senshi of Destruction would never stand a chance   
against them. They were just too fast. That was when he heard a voice   
that he dreaded since the fight began.  
  
"Stop right there. You have caused much damage to the Royal   
Palace. Now you will face me, Sailor Saturn!" Ranma glanced up at the   
roof and saw the girl in the purple miniskirt. Knowing he didn't have   
much time to get the work done, he gathered in all of his remaining   
strength. He quickly wove a return spell underneath himself to open   
when he hit it. Then he faced the attackers once more.  
  
They were saying something, what he couldn't tell. The pounding   
in his head from the power he was containing was drowning everything   
else out. Just as he had gathered in the last of his reserves the   
figures made to jump at the youngest of the Senshi. They were too   
late. "KUROI FENIKKUSU TOMURAI NEGAIGOTO!!!!!!!" A gigantic column of   
black flames erupted under the black assassins. They made no cries as   
they were incinerated since it happened to fast for them to know. The   
flames abated and Ranma collapsed, only to disappear as he hit the   
ground.  
  
****  
  
Setsuna sighed slightly as she and Tomas glided across the floor   
of the ballroom. It had been a long time since she had had someone who   
she could dance with. Most people were either intimidated to dance   
with someone who could see the future, or she couldn't trust them   
enough to let them get so close to her. In fact the last time she had   
danced while at the Moon Palace had been before she had met Ranma or   
Tomas. (Has it been so long? I can hardly remember that time. And   
Nephrite was hardly the dancer that Tomas is.)  
  
The pair was currently the center of attention at the ball. The   
dance that Tomas was leading her through took her by surprise. It was   
a deceptively simple dance, and yet it set the heart racing. There   
were moments in it that seemed like pauses for a fraction of a second,   
but for those dancing it seemed like hours. Setsuna couldn't remember   
the last time that such emotions had run through her. She had   
suppressed any attractions that she had for the opposite sex years ago,   
when she had learned just what the other Senshi were like.  
  
It had been her predecessor that had shown her the truth. It   
turned out that the Former Sailor Pluto had a past time that Setsuna   
never would have imagined. She took an unnatural delight in torturing   
teenage boys. She would seduce them into joining her in her room and   
then proceed to take some of the … more important parts from them. She   
had even kept a collection of all the "trophies" that she had gotten.   
It had been her first time taking her apprentice to such an evening.   
Unfortunately she hadn't broken Setsuna as much as she had thought.   
Setsuna watched what happened, and then had slipped a knife into the   
elder's back. She had been sure that she was going to be executed for   
it, when Serenity laughed the problem off. She had then been informed   
that she was the youngest at that time to do such a thing and was then   
dismissed from the court.  
  
There was another slight pause in the dance and her breath   
caught. Her face was no more that an inch from Tomas's. She could   
see his emerald green eyes staring deeply into her own. Her heart   
started to pound as thoughts of what could happen raced through her   
mind. Another portion, the one that normally controlled her was   
telling her to back away, to ignore the temptation since it would only   
interfere with the mission. The part that was in control right now,   
however, was sending a different message entirely. It was telling her   
to stop being the Guardian of Time. It was informing her that now was   
not the time to be refusing her inner most feelings. That it was time   
for her to put aside the horror that she had witnessed so long ago and   
to start being what she was always meant to be: a woman.  
  
And then the moment was over. The dance had started again.   
Setsuna sighed slightly once more at the lost opportunity to let some   
feelings show. No matter what happened something would occur that   
would make her argue over whether to express her feelings or not. Age   
really had no meaning to her. It also had no meaning to her two   
Knights. One of the gifts bestowed in the Gates of time had been an   
enhanced life force. One that would last thousands of years. The   
eight or nine years that separated her from the two seemed too small   
to even care about. It had take her time to start to notice the two,   
but as they grew from that original 13 years of age, she came to   
realize that neither had been a child for some years. Her mind   
wondered were the time had passed when she realized that they were   
adults to be trusted.  
  
As all these thought ran through her mind she forgot about the   
petty revenge that she and Tomas were taking against Princess Serenity.   
Only the dance had become important to her, the reason for it had   
ceased to matter. It did have the desired effect, however. Princess   
Serenity was filled with fury as she tried to recapture the attention   
of the crowed. She had a deep craving for the spotlight, and nothing   
she and Endymion had danced could get anyone's attention. This is why   
she was glad when a messenger came in to speak with her mother. The   
ball was unceremoniously ended early, and the Senshi were required to   
meet with the Queen in private.  
  
****  
  
Ranma's eyes slowly opened. His gaze took in the ceiling of his   
apartment with a critical gaze. He tried to move but found that he had   
little to no control over his own limbs. Thinking back to the fight   
he had been in, he came to two conclusions. The first was that he   
needed to watch over Saturn a lot more carefully, for a lot more time.   
If the people were going to be attacking the palace, he had to be there   
as much as possible. It wouldn't do to have someone sneak in and slit   
her throat when he was supposed to be guarding her. His second   
conclusion was that he did some massive overkill, and now he was   
paying for it. Using the Tenchi Yougeki in the battle was a mistake.   
He didn't need the increase of power to win the fight. It would have   
taken him longer, but he would have still won. He also never should   
have called upon the Kuroi Fenikkusu Tomurai Negaigoto. He was now so   
weak that it would be days before he could fight again with any   
effectiveness.  
  
"This is just wonderful." He stopped talking out loud after   
that, though. The pain that coursed through his jaw was nothing   
compared to the headache that surrounded his mind. Gathering his   
little strength he moved his hands underneath himself and slowly began   
to make his way toward the table in the middle of the main room. He   
had still not gotten any furniture besides a single table and a futon.   
The prices on Saturn for anything wood were worse than those on the   
moon. The price of the table alone almost took half of his money   
allotment for the month. After over an hour of puling himself along   
the floor he finally made it to his objective. With his last strength   
he reached up to the table and brought his hand down upon a small   
rectangular device. He let his fingers trace over the device until   
they came across the smallest button on it. The button was pushed   
down rapidly twice just before Ranma slipped into the blackness once   
more.  
  
****  
  
Tomas glanced down at the buzzing in his right wrist. The black   
gem imbedded in his armor began to pulse and vibrate as it received a   
signal from far away. Being stuck in the main council room with the   
Queen, however, kept him from doing anything about it. Of course, the   
way the discussion was going, he had a fairly good idea just why that   
specific signal was going off. (Ranma, I hope you're okay. I can't do   
anything to help you until I get out of here.) He brought his   
attention back to the Queen just as she looked up from some documents.  
  
Queen Serenity looked over the people gathered before her. When   
her eyes came to Tomas he knew that something bad had happened,   
and something even worse was going to. His body tensed in   
response to his worries. His eyes shifted around the room to see   
everyone else who was in it. While it was only the Inner Senshi   
it was still more power than he wanted to take head on. When he   
heard his name spoken his attention shifted back to the Queen.   
"Captain Tomas, you will accompany Jupiter, Mercury, and Pluto   
while they escort my daughter on a tour of the system. The tour   
will go from Mercury to Saturn with the stop in this sector being   
Earth. You will NOT leave her at anytime during the tour. When   
she sleeps you will be inside her bedroom. When she showers you   
will be immediately outside the door if there are no windows. If   
there are windows to the bathroom you will be inside the bathroom   
with her. The Senshi will be staying on there own worlds when   
they reach them, so you and Pluto will remain a constant in her   
time away. Do you understand your mission?"  
  
"Yes my Queen, I understand completely." (My god, she wants me   
that close to her. What the hell is going on with this. I can't   
believe that any parent would want to put their child in a position   
like that. Can't contradict orders, though. I need to get to Ranma   
too. This just keeps going from bad to worse.) After a few more   
directions such as scheduled leaving times the Queen dismissed the   
group.   
  
Tomas quietly followed Setsuna to their rooms at the very end of   
what had become known as Senshi Hall. It was here that all of the   
Senshi had their rooms inside the Moon Palace. Tomas opened the door   
to Pluto's chamber and waited for her to enter before following. He   
headed toward the kitchenette to prepare the two a small snack to eat   
while they discussed the events of the day and what had happened in   
the meeting.  
  
Setsuna, in the meantime, headed into her bedroom to change out of the   
gown she was in. She slid out of the beautiful green dress and laid   
it across her large bed. As she moved toward her closet she stopped   
in front of a large mirror built into the wall. Starting at the top   
of her hair, her eyes traced over her beautiful features until they   
reached a point just below the center of her breasts.  
  
It was there that the bruises started. From that point until just   
below her waistline, Setsuna's body was a mass of bruises and welts.   
She had incurred the wrath of her queen by not informing her of the   
two knights she had trained. The other Senshi participated   
enthusiastically in the beating of their fellow Senshi. They took   
pleasure in the pain that they had caused her, pleasure and excitement.   
All of the Senshi who stood with the Queen enjoyed inflicting pain and   
suffering upon anyone. Setsuna's eyes filled with tears as she   
recalled the looks of joy that flooded their eyes as they struck her   
repeatedly. She gently traced one of the larger welts. This   
particular welt had been caused by Sailor Venus's Love Me Chain. As   
her fingertips touched a particularly sensitive spot she gasped in   
pain. Her eyes went to the door and watched intently for a moment.   
When no one knocked on it, she relaxed. Ranma and Tomas were extremely   
protective of her and if Tomas ever got a look at the mass of bruises   
on her body she doubted anything could stop him from taking revenge.   
  
A slightly lost look came into her eyes as she realized that she had   
trained the two far more than she should have. Their strength was   
beyond that of any save the Queen. And if both of them got involved   
in the fight, Setsuna doubted that even Queen Serenity could hope to   
come out of the fight alive. The Ginzuishou might be powerful enough   
to revive planets, but it took a long time to gather enough energy.   
By the time Serenity had enough to kill the two, she would already be   
dead.  
  
Setsuna finally tore her gaze away from the mirror. The pain of   
looking at her wounds was too great for her to bear much longer. She   
headed over to her closet and removed a simple dark green dress from   
it. Pulling it over her head she headed toward the door, stopping   
only to make sure none of the bruises could be seen. Satisfied with   
the look, Setsuna headed out the door and made her way to the dining   
room table.  
  
Tomas was just laying out some dishes for the simple soup he had   
prepared for them to eat. At her raised eyebrow he spoke. "We've got   
a problem. The Queen contacted me and wanted to inform us that we'll   
be leaving in two hours. That means I can't go help Ranma, and we're   
going to miss breakfast. I'm afraid this soup is all I could put   
together in time."  
  
Setsuna looked down and the simple peasant meal and sighed. It was   
the same thing he always made. That was most likely due to the fact   
that it was the only thing he could make that was truly good. She did   
get tired of it after a while, though. "Its fine, Tomas. I know you   
did your best, but you are no cook. Next time call the palace kitchen   
to send something up." He laughed sheepishly and nodded in agreement.  
  
***  
  
Ranma's eyes opened to the knocking on the door. He glanced down   
at himself to see that he was still in his armor. After a moment of   
concentration, the armor flowed back into his skin. He slowly pulled   
himself up so that he was sitting on the table. "Come on in. Its   
unlocked, I think!" The door slowly, almost nervously, opened. In   
walked a girl with long black hair. Ranma stared at her trying to place   
were he knew her from. He just couldn't bring up any type of   
connection. When she looked at him, though, her golden eyes gave her   
away. He gave the girl a small smile. "Hello Salina, what brings you   
to my humble home?"  
  
Salina walked over towards him, but stopped about three or four   
yards away. She spoke in a very quiet voice. "I was worried about   
you."  
  
Ranma blinked a couple of times at that. "Why were you worried   
about me?"  
  
"Well, you haven't been to school in three days and…"  
  
"THREE DAYS!!!!"  
  
"Um, yes. No one knew where you were. I thought I'd come by and   
see if you were home. You said that you had some problem and, well,   
I…" Salina trailed off and began to blush.  
  
Ranma smiled and stood up. Well, at least he tried to stand up.   
His legs gave out on him and he fell forward, right onto Salina. A loud   
groan escaped his lips as he blacked out.  
  
***  
  
There was blackness. Nothing but an empty void before him. And   
then there was nothing but light. Ranma slowly realized tat he was   
staring at the ceiling of his apartment on Saturn. After blinking a   
few times he slowly sat up and gritted his teeth against the pain.   
"Great, how long was I out this time? And where the HELL IS TOMAS!!!"  
  
"Who's Tomas?"  
  
Ranma's head spun at the sound of the female voice. He got more   
angry at himself since he never even sensed her presence. Either she   
was good at hiding it, or he was still way too out of it. (Probably   
the second.) "Tomas is a good friend of mine, Salina. I called him   
the day I go sick and he said he'd be here in two days. I'm just   
wondering what went wrong that he couldn't come. That's all."  
  
Salina gave him a smile. Ranma was taken aback at the quiet   
beauty behind it. It made him wonder why no one else had seen it   
before. "You do have a few messages saved on your terminal. Do you   
want me to read them to you?"  
  
"No that's okay. Tomas tends not to like people knowing just what   
it is he's doing. I'll read them later. How long was I out this time?"  
  
"Only two days this time. Are you feeling okay now?"   
  
Ranma slowly stood up and began to stretch. Realizing that his   
shirt hadn't been changed in five days he pulled it off and tossed it   
in a corner. Sighing with relief he began to stretch all of the kinks   
out of his joints and muscles.  
  
Salina's eyes widened at the site of Ranma's bare chest. A rather   
deep blush rose to her face as she watched Ranma's muscles ripple as he   
stretched. Not wanting him to see her in such a condition, Salina   
rushed from the room. Ranma stopped to stare at her for a few moments   
before shaking his head. Opening his closet, Ranma grabbed one of his   
nicer outfits and headed for the shower.  
  
***  
  
Ranma sighed as he watched Salina leave. He had to admit she was a   
great cook. And had a good personality too. Not to mention a quiet   
beauty that most would over look. He felt himself beginning to warm up   
to her. It wasn't every day (more like never) that he met a girl that   
he was comfortable with. Oh sure he new all the tricks to seduce them,   
and make them fall for him, but it was rare that he came across one   
that he liked to be with without some other motive present. Tomas was   
the same way, he knew. But with the type of life they lived it was   
hard for them to give any girl a small window into their hearts.   
"Speaking of Tomas, lets see why he isn't here."  
  
Ranma walked over to the terminal and brought up his mail program.   
He began running the decryption software and activated the shielding   
system to keep out any unwanted 'guests.' There were three messages   
from his friend. 'Silver is a Pain', 'Water is Trouble', and 'Love   
Just Plain Sucks'. Ranma sighed at the additional bad news. He opened   
the first one.  
  
Ranma, got to make this quick. The Queen is sending me on   
some damn escort duty forThe princess. We're going to   
Mercury and From there out till Neptune. Will be on   
Saturn in three weeks Moon Time. Leaving Now. See you   
then. Tomas.  
  
Ranma just sighed. Three weeks moon time. That meant Tomas would   
be on Saturn at the end of the week. Better late then never. In most   
cases anyway. He opened the second message.  
  
You're never gonna believe this, Ranma.Mercury has turned   
an entire science Instalation into her own private zoo.   
She's doing genetic manipulation here. Real nasty stuff   
too. These things were Once human, Ranma, and now... they   
Remind me of those demons we trashed That invaded Asteroid   
462. Flesh melting Off the bone only to reform, eyes   
hanging Out of the socket but still able to see. Pieces   
of bone sticking out of the skin. They've gone cannibal,   
too. They eat each Other regularly. Mercury only feeds   
them Once a week. I watched as what I think Was once a   
woman get her throat torn out And others begin to rip   
limbs off only To eat them in the way you go through a   
Chicken leg. It wasn't pretty. And all She does is take   
notes, smile, and nod. Then I learned something worse.   
She is Planning on introducing the chemicals That caused   
these manipulations in to A group of springs on earth.   
She wants To find out how this type of shit effects A   
society. It's hard to stand this, I tell You. Most of   
these things will gladly Join Beryl. Mercury is creating   
an army That's going to want to destroy her. I Wish them   
luck. Tomas.  
  
Ranma read the message twice. "So Mercury wants to manipulate   
life, huh. I'll be glad when her's is ended. It's going to make life   
in general easier to bare. Well, lets find out the problems with Venus.   
Man this is depressing."  
  
I hate this. All I ever get to send you Is bad news.   
Nothing I can do about It, though. Anyway, Venus is   
teaching Our little princess the umm... adult Things in   
life. I'm sure you get the drift. I'll admit that she   
isn't that bad at it. Too bad my training is better than   
the Potions she makes. That and my Purification spells.   
She wasn't all that Pleased when I refused to become her   
Willing love slave. Them's the breaks, Though. She   
also makes some rather Mean poisons. Almost killed me   
with A few of the more exotic stuff. Wish You had been   
here. You're a lot better At this healing stuff than I   
am. I'll be On Earth soon. From there is Jupiter (we're   
skipping Mars as the Senshi is still on the Moon) and   
then I'll see you on Saturn. Hang in there till then.   
Keep the Senshi safe. Toams.  
  
Ranma sat down against the wall and sighed. Nothing was good.   
Absolutlly nothing that was going on with the Senshi had any bright   
spots. And here he was, guarding the only one who hadn't fallen down a   
black path. And to think that he was using the darkness to do it.   
Well, considering that the Silence and the Void were brothers in a   
sense, it didn't really seem all that out of place. Of course there   
was no damned prophecy going with the Void. But then, no one even knew   
that the Void was being tapped for power. Except for the three who   
were using it, of course. Though Pluto didn't really use it all that   
much, her access to Father Time was much more potent than the Void was.   
  
Closing down the terminal, Ranma sighed and headed for the window.   
If he was good enough to go to dinner with Salina, then he was good   
enough to do his job. Summoning his armor, he watched as the world   
shifted into thermal colors. It was much easier for him to see at night   
like that. Hopping onto the balcony he headed for the rooftops and a   
long night of watching a princess.  
  
***  
  
Ranma rolled over after the fifth time the loud buzz sounded   
throughout his apartment. Gritting his teeth he raised one hand toward   
the speaker that was built into the ceiling. Concentrating, he summoned   
a small amount of the void into his body. "KOKUEI NAGAREBOSHI!" A   
pure black ball of energy leapt from his palm to slam into the speaker.   
The buzzing stopped instantly. He rolled over and sighed with   
contentment. Fifteen seconds later a pounding began on his door.  
  
As can be expected Ranma was pretty upset with this persistent   
person. He reached the door and literally tore it out of the wall.   
Since it was made of stuff that makes steel look like hot butter that   
was an impressive feet. At least Salina thought so. Until she looked   
at Ranma's dressed state. Or a better way to put it would be his   
undressed state. Her face turned beat red and she started to babble   
incoherently.  
  
Ranma stared at her for a few minutes before looking down. When   
he noticed his state, he just shrugged and headed toward a pile of   
clothes on the floor. Grabbing a pair of his school pants, Ranma pulled   
them on and took up a white shirt. "So what brings you hear this   
morning Salina-chan?"  
  
"Sc-sc-school."  
  
Ranma glanced out the window at the rising sun. Judging by its   
position Ranma realized that they were going to be late. Since he still   
wasn't in top shape, especially after only two hours of sleep. Do to   
his job of protecting Princess Karinna Ranma didn't make it home until   
almost dawn. And then Salina just had to come by and get him for   
school. He knew that their was a good reason to turn down her offer of   
going out to dinner, but unfortunately his stomach decided to take   
control of his brain. (Man, that happens way too often for my taste.)   
Ranma threw on the shirt and jacket that were part of the school's   
regulation dress and headed for the door. Salina was still blushing   
deeply when he got there and had replaced the door on its track. After   
waving his hand in front of her face a couple of times and getting no   
response, he simply took her arm and led her toward school.  
  
***  
  
Ranma and Salina were walking home from school when Salina finally   
brought up the question that Ranma was hoping for. "Ranma, do you know   
who I am?"  
  
"You're my friend, and a beautiful young woman, right?"  
  
Salina blushed at the compliment. She had no idea why Ranma's   
words could do this to her, but they did. She had been complimented   
many times before, but none of them had ever seemed as sincere as when   
Ranma said them. "That's not what I meant. Do you know who my family   
is?"  
  
Ranma sighed. "Yes, Salina, I do. You're a member of the royal   
house, correct?"  
  
"You do know? Then you know my Sister is.."  
  
"Sailor Saturn, yes I know. As a member of the court I have to   
know all important members of the Royal houses of all the planets. Or   
at least that's what my mother always said." (God please let her buy   
that please, please, please!)  
  
"Your mother seems rather strange. But she also seems a lot   
better than your father."  
  
"Yeah, Oyaji is really rather, well, to put it bluntly, stupid.   
I still can't believe all the problems he caused me. Um, Salina, why   
did you bring this up?"  
  
Salina blushed again. "Well, there is going to be a Royal ball   
in two days and I was hoping that you would accompany me." Then in a   
small voice, almost a whisper, "Please?"  
  
Ranma looked at the girl and smiled. She was so kind and gentle,   
how could he refuse her. "Of course I will, Salina, I'd be glad to."   
The smile that came across her face lightened Ranma's heavy heart   
immensely. He started to ponder whether he would be able to have a   
life after the Great Fall, or if that too would be taken from him. And   
more to the point, he wondered if this girl would be there to share it   
with him.  
  
***  
  
Tomas stared out the window of the Star Cruiser. It was a luxury   
ship for use by the Queen and her daughter. That being said, he was   
currently in what could best be described as a cafeteria. It was for   
those passengers who didn't have a high enough rank to eat with the   
Royal family in the dining room. Tomas had more than enough rank to eat   
in the dining room, he just hated the formality of it. Which was the   
main reason that he was sitting where he was right now. The cafeteria   
had an enormous viewing window so passengers could look out at the   
stars. He was currently sitting at a table for two by himself and   
gazing into the deepness of space.  
  
As he watched the sea of stars float by, he could only think of   
how much it seemed to resemble his mind. A blank sea of blackness   
holding all of the nightmares and pains that he had received through out   
his short life. Any type of kindness or hope was but a small speck of   
light in the distance. Occasionally one of the specs would grow beyond   
a small white mark, but it took a lot to bring that about. In fact,   
there were currently only two people who had brought that small star   
into a blazing sun, Ranma and Setsuna. Of course he never let the mark   
blaze in public, but when he was alone with the two all barriers would   
drop.   
  
He raised his mug of coffee to his lips and savored the bitter   
taste as it went down. He was glad that the ship he was on was an Earth   
vessel. It meant that he could get a good strong cup of coffee. For   
some reason all of the other plants drank only tea. It was just   
something that he couldn't fathom. The tea did nothing for waking up in   
the morning, like he was doing now. Or at least relative morning. It   
was hard for him to tell on a spaceship.   
  
Tomas turned his head toward the interior of the ship and looked   
around. It seemed that this was a popular time to catch breakfast, as   
it appeared that all of the tables had at least one person at them, most   
of them more. Not seeing anything interesting happening around him, he   
shifted his gaze back to the stars. As he looked through the glass, he   
shifted his gaze. Instead of staring at the stars he watch the   
reflection of the room play on the glass. He smiled as he watched a   
couple of female crewmembers walk by chatting. It was that which he   
was there to protect. The happiness and joy of the people were the most   
important thing.  
  
As he stared into the glass, the scene changed. Once again he saw   
Sailor Mars cut out a young girl's heart. That image faded into a   
pitiful creature locked in a cage on Mercury as that planet's Senshi   
explained how slicing the genes she change a normal human into such a   
monstrosity. Once more the image in the glass shifted and became Earth,   
were a pair of villages water supply was contaminated by Mercury and all   
of the people began to change. And then the scene shifted and once more   
simply showed the reflection of the people in the cafeteria.  
  
Folding his arms, Tomas rested his forehead on the table. The   
images just wouldn't leave him alone. He tried to get rid of them, but   
nothing seemed to be able to be done. Whenever he slept the nightmares   
began, and when he woke up it was as though he had never bothered to   
sleep. It finally reached the point where he had stopped sleeping. He   
simply meditated at night. He was feeling a lot better than when he had   
tried to sleep. A small sigh escaped his lips as the thoughts went past   
his mind's eye again.  
  
"Boy, you're looking down. What's wrong?"  
  
Tomas raised his head to take in the girl who spoke to him. She   
had reddish blonde hair going down a little past her shoulder blades.   
Her eyes spoke of a general care to the world. Tomas, however, was   
never one to share his thoughts to strangers. At least not in detail.   
"Just remembering some stuff I wish I could forget. Nothing for you to   
worry over."  
  
"You don't want to talk about it, do you?"  
  
"No."  
  
"Don't let it pull you down, whatever it is. You've got to be   
strong. See you around, maybe." The girl turned and headed out of the   
room. Tomas followed her with his eyes until she was gone.  
  
(Wonder what her name is? Oh well.) He turned his gaze back to   
the stars.  
  
***  
  
Ranma looked over his image in thew mirror. He was dressed in his   
solid black tuxedo. The last time he had worn it was at the ball on the   
moon. Now he was dressed up for another ball. He wasn't too thrilled   
about going, but it was his job. Sure he'd enjoy being with Salina but   
he had to keep his eyes on the princess. This would be a good chance   
for a quiet assassination, and he had to make sure nothing like that   
happened. And he had to do it discretely too.   
  
The last time he had this type of mission things got a little out   
of hand. (Damn Tomas for screwing that one up! Couldn't he do a simple   
thing like NOT throwing fireballs around in a crowed ballroom.) "Sigh…   
It will be good to see him again, though. And Lady Pluto of course.   
Hope that she hasn't been corrupted by Tomas too badly, though."   
  
Glancing at the clock on the wall, Ranma saw that it was time for   
him to leave. He had to make his grand entrance soon. After checking   
his hair one last time he headed for the door making sure to lock it.   
After he had broken it he was told that under no conditions was anything   
in the apartment supposed to be damaged again. He was hoping that Tomas   
would be able to fix the door buzzer, or at least knew someone who   
could. Ranma really didn't want to have to explain how that had   
happened. The door had been bad enough.  
  
As Ranma left his apartment complex into the cool night, he   
breathed in the air deeply. He was finally getting used to the heavy   
air that was under Saturn's massive cloud cover. As he started a casual   
walk toward the royal palace he gazed at the swirling clouds. While the   
shifting reds and oranges was rather pretty, Ranma missed the stars.   
He remembered long nights when he had been living on the streets of   
Serenity's capital with Tomas. Back then the only constant in their   
lives was the stars. They had spent many long evenings gazing into that   
infinite void and questioning whether they would leave the Moon, see the   
other planets up close, or just get a chance to move through that void.  
  
Turning the last corner, Ranma walked to up to the main gate of   
the palace. Approaching the pair of guards, Ranma removed the   
invitation from his pocket. As he looked over the guards he noticed   
their young age. (Great, they've got trainees guarding the front gate.   
Talk about light security. If anyone attacks from the front these two   
are as good as dead.) Shaking his head in disgust, Ranma handed the   
nearest one the invitation. After a few moments of looking over the   
card Ranma was waved through the gates.  
  
As he entered the Palace he noticed two problems. The first was   
that there wasn't a guard in site. After the relaxed guards at the   
front he had hoped there would be at least something serious inside.   
The second problem was that there didn't seem to be any servants around   
to direct people to the ballroom. If Ranma didn't already know the   
inside by hart after his many long nights of guarding he could have been   
seriously lost. As it was he headed straight for the ballroom, hoping   
that something interesting would happen (though not dangerous to the   
Royal Family).   
  
As he approached the doors to the ballroom he spied another two   
guards who were on duty. That made a total of four who were actually   
prepared for something. These two, like the others seemed to be   
rookies. Neither had the hard edge of veteran solders, and neither were   
in any sort of ready position. They both were leaning against the   
doorframe and showed no sign of being anything more than ceremonial   
fluff.  
  
Ranma gave the two guards a polite nod as he stepped through the   
doorway. The first thing that he did was to allow his eyes to sweep   
over the room and mark the entrances and exits. Only a single door, but   
the entire back wall was glass. That didn't exactly make Ranma feel   
safe, but he didn't have much say on the matter. All he could really do   
is keep a close watch on it and stay between his ward and the glass   
wall.  
  
Moving toward what appeared to be the largest crowed, Ranma began   
putting names to faces. He didn't know much about the Saturn nobility   
even after his time on the world. After all, he was never invited to   
the general dances or the sessions of court. This was the first time   
that he had openly walked anywhere on palace grounds. Nearing the large   
group of people, Ranma spied a much smaller group with a rather large   
breathing area around them. He gave a small smile at the way people   
kept glancing at that small group. Well, group would be overstating   
it. There were only two people in it.  
  
Before Ranma could approach his old friend and his ruler, a small   
figure in a purple dress. Salina sent a shy smile up to Ranma. "Hello   
Ranma. Thank-you for coming." She then lowered her face to try and   
hide the blush that was there.  
  
Ranma put a pair of fingers under her chin and lifted it so she   
could see his face. He then gave her the most killer smile that he   
could come up with. "Thank-you for inviting me, Your Highness. It is a   
pleasure to be here." Ranma's eyes quickly left her blushing face to   
find Tomas and Pluto only to find the two gone. As he swept his gaze   
over to the dance floor he found them on the edge, dancing a slow,   
stately dance. After a moment of blinking in surprise, Ranma looked   
back at Salina. "Would you like to dance, Salina? I'm sure that a new   
song will be starting soon." After seeing her slight nod, Ranma led   
her to the dance floor.  
  
As a new song began, Ranma led the Princess to the floor. As the   
next song began, He started to lead Salina into a dance that was   
developed on Earth some time in the past. It was stately, very proper   
for a Princess to dance, and most importantly it would end with the   
pair next to Tomas and Setsuna. Ranma paid little attention to the   
dance as he watched the large glass wall. A small spot on his head   
began to itch. Something bad was going to happen, and he had to know   
where and when.  
  
The song came to an end and Ranma's head was turned straight   
toward Tomas's. "Since when did you dance?"  
  
Tomas released Pluto and turned toward his friend. "Since I got   
stuck attending all of these Royal Balls. Let me tell you, I'd rather   
be in those High School classes with you. At least then I wouldn't   
have to sleep standing up."  
  
Ranma laughed at that. "I doubt you'd sleep in class, Tomas. You   
always did manage to stay awake, somehow."  
  
"Practice, it all takes practice. Besides this way I can handle   
your end of the load when you mess up." Tomas gave Ranma a grin.   
"Besides, the way this pretty young lady is hanging on you, I think you   
have been spending more time studying something other than your text   
books. So are you going to introduce us?"  
  
Ranma looked down at Salina to see that she was indeed hanging on   
his arm, and she was blushing bright red. After giving Tomas a look   
that would have killed a lesser person "This is Salina, Princess of   
Saturn, and my date for the evening? Why don't you introduce   
yourself?"  
  
Tomas gave Salina a sweeping bow, "I am Tomas, Your Highness,   
Knight of Pluto, Captain of the Planetary Knights, and Lord of the   
Southern Reaches. Not that the Southern Reaches really has very much   
to offer me, however. If I can remember correctly I own a total of   
three sheep and a horse. Not impressive, which is why I spend most of   
my time in the Royal Palace. I'm I correct, Lady Pluto?" Tomas smiled   
at his green hair companion.  
  
"You forgot the cow, but otherwise, yes, that about covers what   
your family owns." Setsuna turned toward the princess. "I don't   
believe that we've been introduced, Your Highness. I am Lady Pluto.   
How is your father?"  
  
After the introduction Salina just stood there with a gaze of   
disbelief on her face. Her arms had released Ranma and now hung at her   
side. After a few moments of silence Tomas quietly took Ranma's arm   
and led him away from his stunned date. "I guess meeting with someone   
who can see the future is quiet a shock huh?"  
  
Ranma shook his head. "You don't know the half of it. The first   
time we met she asked me if I knew the Lady, and when I offered to   
introduce her she almost broke up. I think she feels like she's meeting   
a legend or something."   
  
The walk that the two young men had gone on led them out of the   
ballroom and on to the balcony. Neither spoke as they stared up at the   
shifting clouds of Saturn. After a few minutes the two turned around   
with a like thought that the elder Princess of Saturn would have snapped   
out of her trance. The itch on Ranma's head got a whole lot worse.  
  
"YOU TWO! Who are you! What are you doing here!"  
  
Ranma and Tomas shifted to face the scream. Before there eyes   
was none other then the Senshi of Destruction, although she was   
currently in a gown and not a fuku. Ranma gave a sigh of despair and   
Tomas started to swear under his breath. The night had been going far   
too well to last. Tomas stepped forward to try to talk their way out   
of the situation when Ranma caught movement out of the corner of his   
eye. "TOMAS GET HER DOWN!"  
  
Tomas never even bothered to look at what caught Ranma's   
attention. He trusted him far more than that would allow. Diving   
forward his body slammed into the Princess of Saturn knocking her to the   
floor with his own body pressed on top. A flash of light lit her   
shocked face followed by an explosion above them.  
  
Ranma, meanwhile, had already called forth his armor and was   
heading toward the point where the shot came from. Half way across the   
lawn, an explosion caused him to halt and turn back towards the part.   
The entire roof above Tomas and Karinna collapsed. Ranma swore as he   
saw over a dozen of those black things that he had battled before land   
on the pile of rubble. Turning back toward the palace wall he could   
make the outlines of at least twenty more of the beings charging   
straight at him. With the hope that Tomas could handle the dozen   
inside, Ranma moved to meet the charge of the outside intruders.  
  
As Ranma approached, he caught a small glimpse of metal reflected   
in the moonlight. Almost snickering at the pointless using common   
weapons was against him, Ranma dove into the fight. His cockiness   
quickly ended as he felt one of the knives bit into his skin. Leaping   
away from his opponents, Ranma looked down at the long gash in his arm.   
There was red blood seeping from the slice in his armor. Ranma stared   
dumbly at the cut for only a moment. While he had thought there was   
nothing that could cut through his armor, he was fast to adapt a new   
strategy to the fight.  
  
Moving in quickly, Ranma called forth his Ki claws. The black   
figures paused for a moment trying to take in the appearance of three   
foot long golden claws coming from their intended target's hands. For   
Ranma, however, that moment was long enough. Springing forward, he   
drove the claws on his left hand through one opponent's head. The claws   
on the right hand were used to slice another in half as Ranma passed   
him. As Ranma passed his first to victims, he rolled his body and   
cupped his hands in front of himself. "RYUUJIN SHUURAI!" The lightning   
bolt the tore from his hand rammed into one of the figures, blowing a   
hole through it and splintered, frying three more.  
  
Moving himself so that he could face his last six opponents Ranma   
grinned. "DEATH'S SHADOW!" Blackness darker than anything climbed up   
Ranma's body and devoured him. The six figures didn't know what to do,   
until they began to explode one by one. In only a few seconds only one   
was left standing amid a field of gore and blood. From a shadow being   
cast by a nearby tree, Ranma walked out. Grinning behind his mask at   
the last of his enemies he once more summoned his claws. Before he   
could move in to finish the job, however, a large explosion turned night   
into day behind him. Without thinking Ranma used a bit of his Ki to   
propel the claws on is right hand forward. The golden blades cut   
through the opponent's neck as Ranma turned to speed back to the now   
destroyed and burning ballroom.  
  
***  
  
Tomas, in the mean time, had been on his hands and knees above the   
Senshi of destruction. Karinna might have been a little put out with   
him except for the fact that there was about two tons of stone resting   
on his back. She had quickly come to realize that he was all that was   
between her and a rather flat fate.  
  
"Could you lean upwards for me?"  
  
"Huh?" Karinna looked into the eyes of her savior. She took a   
moment to pause and look again. She then realized that she couldn't see   
his eyes. It wasn't that it was dark underneath the stone, because in   
truth it wasn't. The angle of the stone allowed for light to shine in   
from outside. The reason that she couldn't see his eyes was the fact   
that he had a mask covering his face, and where the eyes used to be,   
there was now a pair of red, slightly glowing gems could be seen. She   
was taken aback bye the sight.  
  
"Would you hurry up and move? I can't hold this all night, Your   
Highness." Tomas was annoyed at the princess for simply ignoring his   
request. He could hear the violence going on in the room above and as   
long as he was trapped under the stone he couldn't do anything about it.   
Glancing back at the princess he saw nothing more than her face as she   
had finally leaned forward pushing her body against his. Without a word   
of thanks, Tomas shifted his weight to be supported on a single hand and   
placed the other hand against the stone above him. "RIPPER BLAST!" The  
entire section of stone roof that had been on his back a moment before   
was now stone spikes being propelled forward and upward by the force of   
his Ki.   
  
Karrina closed her eyes against the dust that was pushed back.   
When she tried to drop away from Tomas, but his arm slipped from the   
rocks above to grab her and hold her tight to him. Then all at once she   
found that she was on her feet. When she opened her eyes she noticed   
that Tomas was no longer with her. Looking around she caught a black   
figure diving through what had once been the glass wall in the ballroom.   
At first she thought that Tomas had somehow gotten outside and was   
coming back in. A scream from behind her caused her to turn in time to   
see another black figure identical to the one coming through the glass   
cutting one of the strange figures in half with a golden sword. Then   
the world went black.  
  
***  
  
Ranma looked down at the unconscious form of the princess of   
Saturn. He didn't really take much pleasure in knocking out the   
princess, but she would have tried to get involved in the fight. That   
would not have been helpful when it came down to protecting her.   
Spinning around he cut the head off of an assassin that came too close.   
Turning his body again he caught the blade of another dark figure on the   
claws of his left hand. Whipping the right hand up he tried to impale   
the figure. However, this one threw itself backwards to avoid the   
strike. It didn't get it any breathing room as Tomas's sword cut the   
creature's head clean off. It stood prone for a moment before   
dissolving into dust.  
  
Tomas looked at the spot blankly for a split second as what he saw   
caught up with him. Moving his blade over his left shoulder to catch an   
attack from behind he called out to his partner who had missed the   
dissolving figure so that he could go against another creature trying to   
get to the downed princess. "Ranma, be careful! Some of them are   
demons!" Spinning around he knocked his opponents blade aside and   
brought his own blade up to cut through the figures neck. As this one   
fell dead blood burst from the wound drenching a nearby noble, who   
screamed at the sudden shower. Turning once more he saw the area around   
Ranma littered with bodies. Most of them were the attacker's, but a few   
were of nobles of the planet. As he turned again he caught a slight   
shimmering in the corner of his eye. Then from the rift another dozen   
of the monsters appeared. These however did not charge the two warriors   
like all the others had. These turned the opposite way and charged into   
the crowed of nobles who were gathered against the back wall. The wall   
without a door. Tomas dashed forward even as he knew that for some he   
would be too late no matter how fast he moved.  
  
Before he was even halfway to the crowed Tomas saw a geyser of   
blood shoot upward. Another ten steps and the crowed was almost   
completely dead. The creatures that had come through the portal this   
time were a lot more efficient than the first batch. As his sword   
cleaved through the nearest one the rest turned to him. There were now   
over two dozen former members of the Court of Saturn on the floor   
drenched in blood. Tomas planted his feet and brought his sword into a   
high guard with the tip pointed at one of the creatures throats. There   
was total silence for a moment with neither Tomas nor his opponents   
moving. Then a scream pierced the air and the final battle of the night   
started. Half of the creatures moved off toward the side and went   
straight for the area that Ranma was in. Tomas charged the remaining   
half that faced him knowing that Ranma could handle those that came his   
way. He did want to take much time with the fight, however. He noticed  
that those who were left for him weren't moving. Grinning at the   
simplicity of it all he tightened his grip on his sword and dove into the   
middle of the pack. "KUMORIGACHI KOUKUUKOUGEKI!" Tomas's blade and   
body seemed to turn into a fine mist that penetrated all the way through   
his opponents. After a few seconds of this he became solid again. His   
opponents, with dozens of wounds apiece, dropped to the ground dead.   
Turning toward Ranma he blinked. Ranma was down, but all of the black   
demons were standing. "What the hell…?"  
  
Not bothering to think about what was going on, he drove his   
golden sword into the ground. "KAZAN BAKUHATSU!" The ground underneath   
the majority of those surrounding Ranma instantly melted and exploded   
upward. The heat of the created lava caused the figures trapped with it   
to be incinerated instantly. As the lava cooled and turned into a stone   
tower, Tomas took in what was left standing. Only two figures besides   
himself. One was one of the attackers; the other appeared to be a place   
guardsman, who was standing over the princess. Both figures appeared to   
be dazed after the intense heat. Tomas took this opportunity to close   
with the last of the creatures and cut its head off. Nodding once as   
the decapitated body hit the ground he turned to check up on Ranma.  
  
"Oh no."  
  
There right next to Ranma was the head of Salina. Her body,   
however, was no where to be seen.  
  
***  
  
  
Author's Notes: Done Done DONE!!!!! After all this time I got it   
done. This is the largest chapter of anything I've written besides   
Immortal Series. Tell me how you like it. Please, please tell me! I   
want to know! Shees, I got to get off of this sugar and caffeine. I   
got a feeling that its bad for my system. Oh well, that's the way   
college life goes, huh?  
  
Listed below are all of the attacks used by Ranma and Tomas.  
  
Black Fireball: Tomas gathers black flames from the Void and uses them   
to create a fireball. Much more powerful than those created with red   
flames from the astral plain.  
  
Ryuujin Shuurai (Dragon God Lightning Strike): Ranma uses his Ki to draw   
electricity into his body and then releases it as a horizontal lightning   
bolt.  
  
Kokuei Nagarebosshi (Dark Shadow Shooting Star): Summons a small amount   
of Void energy into the palm of the hand and launches forward. The ball   
in roughly the size of a tennis ball. It shoots forward at close to 100   
mph. Upon impact it will enter what it hits and corrupts the target,   
thus doing internal damage instead of external. When used on electronic   
devices it will totally short them out because of an energy overload.  
  
Ripper Blast: Causes rock to explode upward in the form of spikes.   
Tomas can either cause it to explode in a line or in an area. They tend   
to impale things on a scale that makes the Bakkusai Tenketsu training   
look like kid stuff.  
  
Kumorigachi Koukuukougeki (Broken Cloud Air Strike): Tomas spins with a   
speed that seems to make him semi transparent like a clouded figure. He   
then trusts his sword out making it seem like a cloud was formed around   
him. Great attack when surrounded, useless if your opponents don't rush   
you.  
  
Kazan Bakuhatsu (Volcano Eruption): Tomas heats the rock underneath his   
opponent(s) until it melts and then causes it to explode upward. He can  
control the flow and contain it to a specific area. This allows him to   
use it even when allies are close by. Controlling it like this takes a   
lot of concentration.  
  
Death's Shadow: Ranma pulls shadows around him to swallow him up and   
take him into the void. From there he can emerge from any shadow. He   
must do so quickly, however, because extended time in the void will   
cause him to go insane.  
  
Tenchi Yougeki (Heaven & Earth Assault): Ranma forms an aurora of magic   
and Ki around him and reinforces his body with it. It makes him   
stronger, faster, have better reflexes, and increases his senses but can   
only be kept up for a minute (two at the most) but normally that's all   
he needs. It's very draining and he needs to rest quiet a bit   
afterwards.  
  
Kuroi Fenikkusu Tomurai Negaigoto (Black Phoenix Funeral Prayer): The   
final attack of Ranma and Tomas. This technique is done by a single   
person. They only use it in the most important of situations since it   
will leave them as weak as a newborn kitten for days afterwards. This   
attack opens a portal to the Void underneath their enemies. From the   
Void great sheets of black flames sprout from the portal incinerating   
everything caught within them. They actually incinerated a Lava   
creature during their training using this technique.  
  
  
  



	4. Chapter 3

Twin Black Phoenix  
A Ranma ½ and Sailor Moon Crossover  
By Tomas Megerson  
  
Disclaimer: I disclaim everything in this story that isn't mine.  
Meaning everything in it but Tomas. He is mine, and I am more than  
happy to lend him out if asked. Slavery is a wonderful thing, no?  
  
Note: This is going to be dark in some places. It will be extremely  
dark at times. In fact, I suggest you think of this as a Dark Fic. I  
don't have plans to kill off the main characters (too soon anyway) but  
that'll probably change. If you don't like dark fics don't read, but  
then again, this may be the fic that gets you to like them, so give it a  
shot anyway.  
  
Now on to the story.  
  
Chapter 3  
  
"Oh no."  
  
There right next to Ranma was the head of Salina. Her body,  
however, was nowhere to be seen.  
  
The guard who was standing over the bodies blinked as Tomas's helmet  
receded back into his skin. The green eyes which seemed so dead at that  
moment almost caused him to run away. He had never seen eyes like that  
before, and it scared him.  
  
Tomas looked up at the guard. "Is the princess alive?" His voice was  
ice cold.  
  
It took the guard to analize the question. He obviously meant the  
younger princess as the older was easily identifiable as dead.  
"Y..Ye..Yes."  
  
"Good. What's your name, soldier?"  
  
"Ca..Cadet Hi..Hibiki, S..Sir"  
  
"How many of those things did you kill Cadet Hibiki?"  
  
"T..two..I...I..I think Sir."  
  
Tomas's eyes swept the room for a moment. Spotting what he wanted he  
turned back to the trembling young man before him. "Congratulations on  
your promotion Captain. I will speak with you in the morning. Your  
first order is to have these two" he waved his hand at Ranma's and  
Karrina's still bodies" moved to a safe room. Then you will guard over  
them until he awakes. Do you have any questions?"  
  
"Who are you?" The now Captain Hibiki couldn't believe what just  
happened. He went from Cadet to Captain after a single fight.  
  
"Captain of the Planetary Knights. That's all you need to know." He  
turned and started to walk off. "Have them moved now. I must inform  
the King and Queen of their daughter's death."  
  
Tomas began to wander the ball looking for the Royal couple. With all  
of the death that was in the hall, medical staffers had begun to flood  
in. Tomas pushed and shoved his way through the crowed trying to find  
the soon to be distraught parents. He didn't really like what he was  
about to do, but then he didn't have any choice. As, from what he could  
tell, the highest ranking person around it was his duty. Stepping over  
another body he finally located his targets.  
  
As he moved toward the couple, he grimaced at the thought of what he had  
to do. It wouldn't be easy to tell a parent that they lost a child. And  
it would be even harder to tell them exactly how it happened. He knew  
that he had to do it however. As he drew up to them his face became a  
cold, emotionless mask.  
  
"Your Majesties, I have disturbing news." His voice seemed to come from  
the grave. The area around the Royal pair became silent. "During the  
attack your eldest daughter, Princess Salina, lost her life. A group of  
the attackers entered a crowed of nobles and began a gruesome slaughter.  
It appears that your daughter was one of the first to die. The wound  
suggest that she died quickly and with little pain. On another note,  
your youngest daughter, who seems to have been the true target of the  
attack was not injured seriously. She has been moved to a secure room  
and is under guard. Now I have other business to attend to."  
  
To the surprise of all present he turned and walked away. He gave no  
support to the distraught couple, expressed no sadness over what he had  
done, and gave no one any reason to think that he saw this event as  
anything more than a simple footnote to the battle. They where right  
too. To him this was a small footnote. As he walked away his gazed  
penetrated the growing crowed trying to catch sight of someone who was  
actually important to the grand scheme of things.  
  
He walked through the halls his eyes sweeping the blood that now stained  
the floor and walls. He didn't see it. He didn't allow himself to see  
it, for it was more than he could take. He was trained to kill, it was  
all he really knew how to do. Sure he had been trained in other skills,  
but they always led back to making him a more effective killer. The  
scary thing was that the first thing he ever killed was himself. The  
old him. He had to do that, because the old him would have gone insane  
by all the blood shed. A petty thief really isn't equipped to deal with  
mass murder.  
  
He almost paused at the door. Almost. He walked through and ignored  
the sharp change in conditions. It really didn't matter two him, but  
his subconscious marveled at how a single door could block the world  
from carnage and bloodshed. As he strode down the hallway his gaze  
swept for the possibilities of more intruders. Seeing that none where  
present he gave a slight smirk. The courier he had been passing took  
one look at that smirk and fainted. Ignoring the pitiful man, Tomas  
turned the corner into the wing set aside for high ranking guests.  
Moving up to a rather ornate door, Tomas paused to look himself over.  
As he didn't see any blood on his clothes he raised his hand and knocked  
three times. After pausing for a moment he opened the door and went in.  
  
The first thing he did was to sweep his eyes across the room.  
Not wanting to take any chances with the topic he was going to bring up,  
Tomas felt it was best if no one else was here. Not seeing anyone in  
the room, Tomas closed the door and moved to stand by the single couch  
in the living area of the quarters. After about five minutes of waiting  
the door to the bedroom opened and Setsuna walked out. Tomas paid no  
heed to her nightgown, even though it was rather low cut and revealing.  
Setsuna moved to the couch and sat down, motioning her Knight to do the  
same.  
  
"What do you have to report, Tomas."  
  
Tomas sighed and allowed his tense muscles to finally relax.  
"The Princess Salina lost her life in the battle. She was beheaded.  
Princess Karinna is alive, though asleep. Ranma hit her sleeper point  
to make sure she stayed out of the fight. Ranma is unconscious.  
According to a guard he caught Salinas's head as it went flying across  
the room. The sight of it caused him to pause and be overwhelmed. He's  
alive though and in the same room as Karinna. I promoted the guard who  
stood over them to captain and am going to talk to him in the morning.  
He's rather skilled, even killed one of the assassins. No mean feat.  
He should not be wasted as a cadet."  
  
Setsuna blinked at that. "Tomas, you don't have any authority  
to promote people in Saturn's military."  
  
Tomas gave her a small smile. "Actually I do. As the highest  
ranking military officer currently alive on Saturn I have full command  
of the armed forces of the world. That means I can promote people.  
It's one of the perks of being the captain of the Planetary Knights.  
Also, 2/3 of the Saturian Nobility were killed." Tomas gave Setsuna a  
pointed look. "And none of the Senshi participated in the fight even  
though there were two present besides Sailor Saturn."  
  
Setsuna gazed into Tomas's eyes and could see the betrayal that  
was in there. He knew that had she participated in the fighting there  
would have been far fewer deaths. Finally Setsuna broke the gaze and  
looked down at her hands. "There was nothing I could do Tomas.  
Princess Serenity took myself and Uranus into a side room a few minutes  
before the attack started to tell us something. Then she ordered us to  
stay and protect her. There was nothing I could do."  
  
Tomas shook his head at the thought of it all. "Why do I have a  
funny feeling that it's been the Royal family of the moon trying to kill  
Karinna all along? Is it just me or does all of this stink?"  
  
"It's not you Tomas. I agree that the Queen was most likely  
responsible for the recent attacks. I received orders for you a few  
minutes before you came in. You are to stay here on Saturn. The  
princess will be returning to the Moon tomorrow morning. I think she's  
making sure that no suspicion is left on her. I'll be returning to  
Pluto in the morning as the Queen ordered me. I left orders not to be  
disturbed as I was having a "guest" for the night. I figured you would  
want to be nearby in case of another fight."  
  
He gave her a smile. "You know me too well Setsuna. I'll see  
you in the morning."  
  
"Goodnight Tomas." With that Setsuna got up and walked toward  
her bedroom door. She got no more than two steps before a massive power  
build-up in Tomas caused her to turn around.  
  
"THEY'RE ALL DEAD!"  
  
***  
  
Ranma's eyes slowly opened to the world. The first thing he  
noticed was that he was sitting up. The second thing was that he was  
still in his armor. Without giving it a thought he triggered his armor  
to flow back under his skin. Looking around the room without the  
distortion that the eyes in his armor gave him, Ranma saw two things.  
First was that there were no windows in the room. The second was that  
the only light source shown on the still body of Princess Karinna.  
Without even thinking about it he got up and checked to make sure she  
was alive.  
  
The movement caught the eye of Ryoga. Turning slightly so he  
could see the young warrior, "Her Royal Highness is fine, just  
unconscious, My Lord."  
  
Ranma glanced over at the young man and took in his looks. "And  
you are?"  
  
"Captain Ryoga Hibiki of the Royal Saturn Guard. Knight Captain  
Pluto ordered me to stand guard until you awoke. Is there anything you  
need, My Lord?"  
  
Ranma thought it over for a few moments before he shook his  
head. "No, there is nothing that I need. You can go now. I'll guard  
the Princess." Ranma never bothered to look toward the opening and  
closing door. His eyes were locked on the features of Karinna. "She  
looks so much like her sister. Its actually kind of scary." As he  
stared at Karinna his eyes grew a distant look as he was drawn back to  
the fight only a few hours before.  
  
Ranma caught Karinna as she fell to the ground. (That should  
keep her out of the fight). Ranma lowered the now sleeping princess to  
the ground. As he raised himself up he swept his key claws into one of  
the black figures cutting a set of gashes from its stomach through its  
head. Glancing around he realized he was surrounded. Shifting his  
body so he could offer the Princess the maximum protection, Ranma waited  
for the Black things to move in. As one began to get close, it sopped  
and then slumped forward. Ranma looked at the wound in its back and  
followed it to a young guard holding a spear. With a quick motion for  
the guard to join him, Ranma turned to attack an approaching assassin.  
As the guard surged forward to try to get to Ranma, the battle began in  
earnest.  
  
Things were going well for Ranma until he sensed a projectile  
coming his way. After sliding his body to the left ever so slightly,  
Ranma's hand came up and caught the object. Ranma stopped, his claws  
disappearing from his hands. Holding the object he could only stare  
into the dead eyes of Salina, filled with horror. Then everything went  
dark.  
  
Ranma's eyes snapped back to the present with a slight dead  
look. The look turned to horror as the room was suddenly sprayed in  
blood. Even as Ranma summoned his Ki claws and moved toward Karrina's  
killer, he knew he was too late. The figure vanished with a slight  
flash of light. Ranma took one last look at the room before he turned  
and left. Ranma faded into the shadows and began to move down the halls  
toward where he thought Setsuna's apartment was. When he felt an  
extreme rise in Void energy behind him, he knew he was going the wrong  
way, turned around and hurried to see what else went wrong.  
  
***  
  
Setsuna stared at Tomas, as power seemed to flow off of him.  
She stared at her Knight as the power of the Void radiating from him  
began to incinerate the carpet around him. She blinked once as her  
glass table melted into an unrecognizable puddle from the intense heat.  
She looked into Tomas's eyes and saw something that she had never seen  
before. As she watched his eyes change, Setsuna began to feel fear  
spread into her. Not wanting to even think of what was going through  
her servant's mind she did the only thing she could think of. "Tomas,  
stop that NOW!"  
  
The aura instantly snapped out of existence but the look of pure  
rage never left his eyes. Tomas ignored the mess he had unintentionally  
created as he stood almost still; his only movement was shaking in  
anger. "I'm going to kill them Lady. They're all going to die." His  
voice seemed as cold as the Void that he drew his strength from. "They  
hurt you Setsuna, and for that I'll destroy their very souls if I can,  
or at least what's left of them. There will be no mercy when I go for  
them. They're all DEAD!" The black aura began to build around him  
again before he noticed it and tried to relax again.  
  
Setsuna stared at Tomas trying to figure out what he was talking  
about. Glancing down at the melted table she noticed that it had gained  
a reflective gleam. Staring at her image in the mirror glass, Setsuna  
gazed at herself. Her gaze than moved to her nightgown, and she  
recalled with a dread that this particular nightgown had an extremely  
low back. A back low enough to show the bruises that she received from  
her fellow Senshi. Looking back up at Tomas she felt certain that there  
were going to be more deaths tonight unless she did something to prevent  
it.  
  
"Tomas, you can't take"  
  
"LIKE HELL I CAN! They hurt you Setsuna, and for that they'll  
pay with their lives!" The anger and rage that was moving through Tomas  
was unlike anything he had felt before. Even as he was coming up with  
the most effective ways to begin to kill the Senshi, he tried to sort  
through all of the emotions that were behind the rage.  
  
Setsuna wasn't going to let herself be beaten so quickly though.  
"The time stream Tomas"  
  
"TO HELL WITH THE TIME STREAM! The time stream means nothing to  
me Setsuna, you do! The time stream can go to hell for all I care.  
They're going to pay for the pain they caused you." He was getting  
through the rage now. He was beginning to get a look at the emotion  
that caused the rage. "My first oath was to you, Setsuna. It's an oath  
that I will never break. If I don't respond then...then I've broken my  
oath and let you down. I will never let you down Setsuna, you...you  
mean too much to me."  
  
Setsuna looked into Tomas's eyes. She saw the anger and rage  
there still. But something was behind it this time. She could see  
respect...and maybe something more? She couldn't tell though since she  
had never seen that look directed to her before and even now it was  
pushed far behind the rage. The desires that had come to her during the  
dances that she and Tomas had shared during all of the Royal Balls that  
they had been forced to attend came back to her. She didn't know how,  
but she suddenly found her head pressed into Tomas's chest and tears  
running down her face.  
  
Tomas was caught off guard by suddenly having a crying young  
woman in his arms. He had never seen Setsuna acting in such a manner  
that it didn't occur to him that this might happen. She had always  
acted so strong, wiping his tears or Ranma's tears when they flowed and  
assuring them that the pain wouldn't last forever. Now he suddenly  
found the roles reversed.  
  
Trying to go on instincts, Tomas wrapped his arms around his  
ruler. He gently began to rock her back and forth trying to say  
reassuring words about taking vengeance on the Senshi for all the pain  
they had caused her. He could feel her trembling slowly begin to  
subside. Gently moving her back with a hand, Tomas brought another up  
to wipe the tears from her face. His hand came to a rest on her  
shoulder. The two stood motionless gazing into each other's eyes, try  
to pierce the depths that were there. Setsuna slowly tilted her head  
back as Tomas's began to come closer.  
  
That was when the door opened.  
  
Tomas spun around, his hand going for his sword, but stopping  
half way as Ranma entered the room. He knew that something was wrong  
simply by Ranma being there. He was supposed to be guarding the  
princess. When Ranma looked at him he almost shivered at the pain he  
saw there. When Tomas heard Ranma's voice he did shiver.  
  
"Saturn is dead. Uranus killed her in her sleep. I failed."  
  
After Ranma's announcement silence fell over the room. Each  
person was trying to figure out what to say next. Ranma was slowly  
coming out of the shock that he had suffered in the past few minutes (at  
least it seemed only a few minutes to him). Tomas was trying to figure  
out just what they were going to do now that their reason for being on  
Saturn was dead.  
  
Pluto was the only one who managed to keep her head on straight.  
"We're going to accelerate the plan. I didn't want to do this, but we  
have no choice. "  
  
An evil smile crossed Tomas's face. "Good, that means hunting  
season has started. I got a feeling that it is a good night to die."  
  
Setsuna realized her mistake immediately. She never told Ranma  
or Tomas exactly what the plan was. That caused a small problem. By  
the time she realized what was happening the two young men were gone.  
They did leave a note, however. She stared at the note for a moment  
before fainting. She fell backward and landed on some pillows that had  
been left on the floor.  
  
Ranma and Tomas knew exactly how she was going to respond to  
that little note. It took the two quite a while to write it, since the  
goal of it was to get Setsuna to faint. They needed time to execute  
their plan.  
  
***  
  
Ranma slipped through the open window and crouched low to the  
ground. He had to get into position quickly. After all, it wasn't time  
for games anymore. He had a job to do, and one that he was happy and  
eager to perform. Moving quietly through the shadows, Ranma left the  
empty room and made his way down the hallway. Pausing at a corner, he  
leaned around just enough to see. Only a single guard, and he wouldn't  
even have time to scream.  
  
The guard turned his head and Ranma made his move. He made no  
sound that could be heard as he ran down the hall. The guard's head  
turned back just in time to see a black blur. Then his head fell neatly  
from his shoulders.  
  
Ranma continued down the hall at a run. He paid no heed to the  
man he had just killed. The guard was insignificant. His real target  
was only a few dozen meters away now. Ranma turned a corner and cut  
down another two guards that were on patrol. One made a gurgling sound,  
but it was far too quiet to wake anyone. Another dozen feet and he  
jumped up, landing on a rafter. The funny thing about the construction  
on this world was that the walls didn't connect to the ceiling. The  
pressure got to bad during the worst storms and had a tendency to cause  
buildings to implode. There was a good two feet of space between the  
wall and the ceiling.  
  
Ranma crawled threw the space and landed lightly on his feet in  
the deep shadows just as the real party began.  
  
***  
  
Tomas finished setting the explosives and had moved back to the  
front gate. He never really thought that all that equipment they had  
stolen from Earth would come in handy. He moved himself into the bushes  
by the main palace entrance and counted to ten. Then the explosives  
went off.  
  
Tomas had to admit the fireball was rather pretty. The guards  
who got incinerated by it probably didn't think so, but he didn't really  
care. They weren't important anyway.  
  
He smiled as the main doors opened and a dozen of the palace  
soldiers came through and raced toward the now destroyed gate. He shook  
his head in disgust as not one of them remained to guard the palace. Of  
course, that made it easier for him. He quickly ran inside and began  
racing through the corridors, killing everyone who got in his way.  
Luckily that only amounted to a few guards. He turned a corner and  
smiled as the doors that he was going for opened. They were making it  
easy for him.  
  
***  
  
Ranma watched as the Princess of Uranus shot up at the  
explosion. Tomas was right on time. He quietly moved out of her view  
as she headed for her window. As soon as she had moved past him he  
slipped up behind her. It was too easy. Just before she opened the  
window's blinds, Ranma's Ki Claws were formed and through her back and  
stomach.  
  
"For Saturn" he whispered. Then he made an uppercut motion, cutting  
Sailor Uranus' head into three pieces. Quietly he left the room and  
headed for the rendezvous.  
  
***  
  
Tomas was through the doors like a shadow. No one saw the door  
crack open and then close again. Not even the two guards that were  
supposed to be watching it. Though their being dead already might have  
had something to do with that. Not too much though.  
  
The Queen and King of Uranus certainly didn't see him. If they  
had they might have gotten a scream off. Instead they both died  
quietly, by being split in half. The Royal Chancellor soon followed.  
It really was stupid to keep all of the highest ranking members of  
Uranus's court in the same place during an emergency.  
  
The room was soon a bloodbath with minimal struggle or effort.  
Tomas left the room and head two doors down. There he saw Ranma and  
gave him a nod. A nod in return and the two went through the door.  
  
The room was a storehouse, nothing more, at least that's what  
most believed. It was a store room filled with magical artifacts, so  
many that one more was never noticed. Ranma and Tomas stepped onto the  
transporter and were taken first to an asteroid between Mars and Earth,  
and then back to Setsuna's rooms on Saturn.  
  
The mission was a complete success.  
  
***  
  
Ranma sighed and allowed his armor to flow back into his skin.  
His eyes didn't take notice of Tomas's armor doing the same. Things  
were going to get a lot more complicated for them now. Their actions  
had basically been a declaration of war against Serenity. Ranma wasn't  
sure what to think now. Everyone on every planet was going to be after  
them.  
  
"Ranma."  
  
Ranma turned toward Tomas and raised an eyebrow. "What is it?"  
  
"Watch over Lady Pluto, I need to go and inform their majesties  
about what happened." At Ranma's nod, Tomas turned and left the room.  
  
Ranma walked over to the still out of it Senshi of Pluto and  
gently picked her up. He carried her into the bedroom and laid her down  
on the bed. Grabbing a chair, the young assassin sat down and began to  
think.  
  
Why had he and Tomas taken such drastic steps? Was it for  
revenge or to protect others? Was it because they had no choice, or  
because they wanted no other choice? These questions made his head  
hurt. All he wanted was a sign that they did what was right. Was that  
too much to ask?  
  
***  
  
Tomas walk through the halls of the palace trying to decide  
exactly what to tell the King and Queen, and exactly how to act. As he  
approached the door, he decided it would be best to go with a tired  
warrior look. If he showed them he was human, they would be far more  
likely to go along with him.  
  
He came to a stop before the doors of the Council Chamber. "I  
need to see the King and Queen, alone. I can wait." The two guards  
looked at each other for a moment. They weren't quite sure what to do.  
However they had seen him commanding troops earlier and decided that he  
had rank to request such a thing.  
  
One of the guards opened the door and went in, the door closing  
behind him. Tomas waited at a relaxed attention his face perfectly  
calm. He didn't want to appear excited about anything after all. The  
shock was supposed to come later.  
  
***  
  
Ranma gazed out the window in Setsuna's bedroom, his eyes lost  
in the distant clouds. The sky was beginning to brighten, the thick  
cloud cover gaining light as moments passed. Ranma, however, did not  
take much notice in it. Instead his mind was lost in the memories of  
the past few weeks. He wondered how he could have allowed himself to  
fall in love. How he could have allowed his charge to die. How he  
could have failed. In the end he had come up with only one answer:  
duty.  
  
The old Earth saying, he had found, was indeed true. Duty is  
heavier than a mountain. Ranma really hadn't understood that saying  
before. All of his duty had been simple missions. Go here, kill him,  
save her, steal this, destroy that, with nothing to get in the way.  
Here on Saturn was the first time any of his missions had lasted more  
than a day or two. And Salina had been so...gentle. He'd never met  
anyone like her. She touched something in him, something that he didn't  
think he had had. And now she was gone, lost to the strands of fate.  
Something special had passed him, he was sure of that, and now he would  
never gain the chance to understand just how special it could have been.  
  
  
It was surprising how easy it was to bring her face up in his  
mind. How easy it was to hear her soft voice again. How easy it was to  
feel her gentle touch. It was almost as though she was right in front  
of him. But Salina wasn't, and she never would be again. Instead he  
was alone once more, besides his closest friend and Lady Pluto. It was  
hard now, to think of that. His eyes slid closed as he wondered just  
how he ended up changing so much in so little time.  
  
"ughh...."  
  
Ranma turned towards the bed, removing the last traces of  
sadness from his persona as Sailor Pluto awoke. He moved over to the  
bed as she pushed her self up and looked around the room. Her eyes  
almost seemed relieved about something. For some reason Ranma felt  
himself curious as to the cause. "Lady Pluto, you look relieved about  
something. Is it anything you wish to discuss?"  
  
"Oh, Ranma." Setsuna gave the young man a smile. "I just had  
the funniest dream. You and Tomas went to Uranus to kill the Royal  
Family and the entire military command, and simply left me a note about  
it. Isn't that funny."  
  
Ranma gave Setsuna a gentle smile. He decided to let her down  
easy. "We did." Well...so much for easy anyway.  
  
"You...did?" Setsuna swallowed hard. "Please tell me this is a  
joke." When Ranma shook his head a growl of frustration escaped her  
lips. "That wasn't in the time line Ranma! What in the world were you  
thinking!?"  
  
Ranma was quiet for a moment deciding what to say. After  
Setsuna jumped out of bed and was holding the Timestaff over his head  
threatening him, he decided on an answer. "Oops." His voice, however,  
was deadpan and sarcasm almost dripped from his posture.  
  
The Timestaff fell from Setsuna's hand. "Oops? Oops? Is that  
ALL you have to say!?"  
  
"How about I'm glad we did it? That they not only deserved it,  
but that they got off light considering what they did." The anger had  
reached Ranma. He was almost snarling by this point. "How about the  
fact that they stole a life from me!? I should have made them pay  
tenfold for what they did!" Finally, Ranma was at the point that no  
more words could get out. He stood there shaking, his teeth clenched  
and fists at his side.  
  
Pluto watched Ranma, her gaze trying to penetrate the anger he  
felt, to see who he really was. And finally she saw what she wanted.  
"What's done is done. Not even I am allowed to go back and change the  
past. We'll have to simply move on. Where's Tomas?"  
  
Ranma swallowed his anger, and let it drip away. Pluto wasn't  
deserving of it. "He's meeting with their majesties. Do you wish to  
join them?"  
  
"Yes." With that she started toward the door, expecting Ranma  
to follow.  
  
***  
  
Tomas stood quietly at the end of the table. Upon the table  
were a number of maps of the planet Uranus and of its military  
facilities. He had been surprised at how quickly their Majesties had  
agreed to go along with the plans that he and Ranma and Setsuna had  
created. Tomas had been expecting to have to argue over them, but  
instead their Majesties instantly agreed to allow Ranma and him to run  
everything.  
  
"Now, your Majesties, the crux of the operation is that we will  
be freeing not just Uranus, but also Pluto and Neptune. Ranma and I  
have already planted explosives within the operation centers of Neptune  
and Uranus as well as within their shield generators. Lady Setsuna will  
deal personally with her mother." Tomas turned his attention to the  
heart-broken pair. The news of both their daughter's deaths had  
destroyed what Tomas could have best considered their hearts. They  
would be cruel and ruthless to the ones who took their children from the  
living, but they would also care for their people so none other would  
face such a devastating loss.  
  
"You've already planted explosives?" The Queen of Saturn said  
with a frown.  
  
"Yes, that was part of the operation in which we eliminated the  
threat of Sailor Uranus. We would have gone ahead and struck even if  
you didn't agree to join with us."  
  
King Saturn nodded slowly. "You're taking a lot of risks in  
this whole thing. What more do you have for us? I will not commit my  
people to a war if I don't know what exactly is going on."  
  
"Well...we do plan on talking Beryl into finally making a play  
on the moon. That comes later though." 'No need to mention how we're  
gonna do that. Getting her to release a demon probably wouldn't go over  
well here' he thought. "That's not going to happen until later,  
however. If we do anything with that dumb Earthling too soon and she'll  
just get herself killed and leave us all out to dry."  
  
"So," the Queen said, "what would you have us do exactly? Just  
announcing our succession from the Silver Millenium pact won't be  
enough, will it?"  
  
"No, it won't." Of course, this wouldn't be hard to sell. "We  
need you to seal your borders as soon as you make the announcement. If  
the bitch Serenity can get soldiers to reinforce Neptune and Uranus,  
they're going to be a pain in the ass to take over ourselves." Tomas  
grew silent for a moment as a frown grew on his face. "It might be  
better if you sent your forces there now, actually." His voice was  
thoughtful as he continued. "Serenity is bound to be moving troops  
there after that raid my partner and I pulled."  
  
"But would that not give us away?"  
  
Tomas turned his attention toward the King and shook his head.  
"Not if you hit them fast enough. It'll just look like one solid pirate  
attack trying to insult the Queen more." Tomas grew quiet as he thought  
about that. If there were any Senshi with the soldiers it'd probably  
fail, which would mean they'd have to move ahead quickly. He didn't  
think that there was a strong chance of that happening, but it was  
there.  
  
"Is there anything else that you need, Sir Tomas? You haven't  
mentioned how you plan on taking Neptune yet."  
  
Turning his attention back toward the Queen of Saturn, Tomas  
shook his head slowly. "There are already resistance forces within  
Neptune itself. We've made contact with them, and they know what they  
have to do. Thankfully Neptune doesn't have all that well trained a  
military." His face grew a look of disgust. "They're more into art and  
music and other useless things like that."  
  
Tomas would have said more, but that was when the door to the  
room burst open, and the Senshi of Time stalked in her staff leveled at  
Tomas. "You." Pluto's voice was practically a growl and her ruby eyes  
flashed with all manner of danger.  
  
Her young Knight took his time to carefully place a mild  
expression on his face. "Yes, My Lady. Did I do something to upset  
you?"  
  
"YES!"  
  
Tomas couldn't help but flinch at the scream. He gazed past her  
shoulder to see Ranma looking at him, his face expressionless. He took  
a moment to curse that girl who Ranma fell for before turning his  
attention back to Setsuna. "I've only done everything that you planned,  
My Lady."  
  
The room grew extremely tense after that single remark, as  
Setsuna turned her anger fill gaze full bore on him. Despite all of his  
training, Tomas really could do nothing more then stand there wondering  
if maybe he'd gone to far, and that he was about to come close to dying  
this day.  
  
Finally, though, Tomas saw Sailor Pluto let go of her rage, and  
with a sigh of defeat the room seemed to cool off. "What's done is  
done. If you EVER go behind my back like this again, however..." Tomas  
could only swallow at the implied threat and nod his head in agreement.  
This was not turning out to be a good day for him. "Now, what have you  
accomplished, and what is left to do?"  
  
With a tired sigh, Tomas began to go over the plans once more,  
though occasionally his eyes drifted toward Ranma, wondering just what  
was going through the other's mind.  
  
  
Author's Notes: Well, I've decided to shorten these last few chapters  
up. The reason is that I've begun to do work on the second part of this  
series: Dual Shadows, and you'll learn specifics then. So now, Chapter  
3 is done, and there are only two chapters to go. Each one will  
probably only be 25k or 30k. 


	5. Chapter 4

Twin Black Phoenix  
A Ranma ½ and Sailor Moon Crossover  
By Tomas Megarson  
Email: NighthawkTM@yahoo.com  
Webpage: http://nighthawk.anifics.com  
  
Disclaimer: I disclaim everything in this story that isn't mine.  
Meaning everything in it but Tomas. He is mine, and I am more than  
happy to lend him out if asked. Slavery is a wonderful thing, no?  
  
Note: This is going to be dark in some places. It will be extremely  
dark at times. In fact, I suggest you think of this as a Dark Fic. If  
you don't like dark fics don't read, but then again, this may be the fic  
that gets you to like them, so give it a shot anyway.  
  
Now on to the story.  
  
  
Chapter 4  
  
Ranma's gaze wandered among the stars as the distant points of  
glowing light shined into the Sol System. "How many of you are dead as  
well?" Ranma whispered the question into the air as his face took on a  
glaze of pain. Salina was dead, the same as many of those stars he  
could see. Ranma regretted deeply that he couldn't see far enough so  
that he was gazing into the past, so that he could see her.  
  
He'd been tempted, just for an instant, to try to use the Gates  
of Time to go back to that dreadful night, to take the chance to save  
her life. In the deep silence of the night, as he lay still on his bed,  
the sheets cold against his skin, he wondered if he could do it.  
  
But then his honor asserted itself, his loyalty to his Lady came  
to the front, and he let go of the desperate plan, and dropped into  
sleep, never admitting even to himself the tears that marked his face.  
Ranma stopped looking in the mirror in the morning, first washing his  
face, and removing the stains by his eyes. If he didn't, he wasn't sure  
what his mind would do or how much control he would manage to keep.  
  
Placing his elbows on the rail keeping him from the glass, Ranma  
buried his head in his hands. Life had become a cold, empty place for  
him. He hadn't felt this alone since he was in Serenity's dungeon,  
waiting for his execution, wondering why it had to happen to him.  
"Damn." Still his voice was nothing but a whisper.  
  
He couldn't understand even how this happened. Salina had  
barely been in his life. He'd known her for only a few short weeks.  
And yet with her death, it was as though he had been cut adrift. Tomas  
tried to help him, and Setsuna attempted as well, but he couldn't open  
up. Except for when he was alone and there was no one to see him.  
  
Like now.  
  
Maybe it had been the way she had smiled at him. Maybe it had  
been the concern she'd shown when he'd hurt himself protecting her home.  
Tomas had never shown him concern like that. Neither had Setsuna. But  
for some reason, Salina did, and he'd barely gotten to know her. Salina  
had become...important to him. Maybe he even ended up loving her. He'd  
never get the chance to explore that, though. And maybe that's what was  
causing him so much pain.  
  
***  
  
"Isn't there anything you can do for him, Tomas?"  
  
"No, My Lady, he refuses to open up to me."  
  
Setsuna gave a frustrated sigh that didn't come close to how she  
was truly feeling. In the two months since the rebellion she led  
against Queen Serenity she had been running herself ragged as she  
basically ruled half of the system. The administrative hassle of  
building completely new and just forms of government was giving her  
nightmares every night. She had been thankful, however, that she had  
been able to leave Ranma and Tomas to deal with the civil war she had  
begun.  
  
But now she wouldn't have either of them to help her. In two  
hours they were to depart for Earth in an attempt to gain support on  
that planet. And she would be left at her home to run everything else.  
If she had had a chance to look at things objectively, she probably  
would have found it funny that she was starting to fear what was  
happening. Even though she had planned this all out, even though she  
knew the most probable outcome to events, still she was scarred. For  
years now the only people she could confide in had been her two knights.  
And this could very well be the last time she spoke to them. Or at  
least to Tomas. Ranma had declined joining Tomas for this call across  
the system. And perhaps that hurt her most of all.  
  
"My Lady?"  
  
Setsuna brought herself back to the present and turned her gaze  
to the view screen that was displaying Tomas' image. "Yes?"  
  
"I know I am out of line, but you need to get some more sleep.  
You're trying to do everything, and that just isn't possible."  
  
It was with a tired sigh that Setsuna responded. "I know that.  
I should have a council fully formed by the end of the week, so stop  
worrying about me."  
  
"Very well, My Lady." Setsuna saw Tomas' head tilt toward the  
side as he listened to something that didn't make it through the  
communications system. "We are departing now, My Lady. May you fair  
well."  
  
"And you as well, Tomas." Reaching out, Setsuna cut the  
transmission before leaning back in her seat attempting to let the  
stress leave her body. The majority of her stress had come from the  
hunting and weeding out of all the spies and die-hard Serenity  
supporters from the government, military, and even the mass population.  
The civilians who supported Serenity were all shipped to the inner  
planets on freighters who had all of their navigational gear destroyed.  
There was no real reason to chance the civilians turning the ships  
around and crashing them into military installations. Fanatics were  
never known to be sane, after all. If they had been sane, they wouldn't  
be supporting Serenity.  
  
Opening a drawer in her desk, Setsuna dug underneath a stack of  
paperwork. She didn't bother looking into the deep drawer; she would  
know by touch when she had found what she was looking for. After a few  
minutes her fingers brushed against an almost glass smooth surface.  
Taking the book in her hand, she pulled it from under all of the work.  
  
It had been almost a week since she had last removed this  
specific book from her desk. Her memories drifted back to the days when  
she had time to do so two or even three times in a single day. The book  
was her personal journal, it was what she used to get her feelings,  
thoughts, ideas, and pain out of her system. Her parents had given it  
to her when she had turned seven, all those years ago. The silver  
journal had remained mostly unused until she had received the mark of  
Pluto and had been taken under her predecessor's wing.  
  
The horrors she had discovered in those next four years were  
beyond anything she could have dreamed possible. It had brought back  
memories of stories her older brother had told her, about the evil that  
their Mother committed and let others commit. She hadn't really  
believed her brother's stories, at least not until he disappeared just  
months before she had been revealed as the next Sailor Pluto. The  
'search' her mother had called for was pathetic, not even a token amount  
of what she had available to her.  
  
Setsuna had never forgotten that, and when she had taken over as  
Sailor Pluto, the first thing she sought out in the Gates of Time was  
her brother. It took a lot of effort, a lot of time, and a lot of her  
strength, but eventually she found him, blanketed by the Ginzuishou. He  
had been given to Princess Serenity as nothing more then a toy. The  
Princess had tortured him for almost a week before his life finally gave  
out and he died.  
  
She didn't even have to look at the pages, her fingers  
immediately opened to the page when she wrote that down. Turning her  
mauve eyes down to the entry, she wondered briefly how any one girl  
could have so many tears to shed. The two pages on which she had  
written that horrible event were wrinkled, smeared, and stained by the  
pain that had flooded through her.  
  
It was then that she began to seriously consider over throwing  
the House of Serenity. She spent weeks at a time away from court, away  
from what was left of her family, and searched through the Gates trying  
to find something, anything that would let her succeed. When she came  
across the already ambitious Beryl, she thought for a moment that she  
had something that would work. But Serenity's Senshi would prove more  
then enough to destroy Beryl and those she brought to her cause, leaving  
Serenity and the Ginzuishou to destroy Metallia. So something else was  
needed.  
  
And as her search took her to the moon, she came across two  
street boys who showed guts and courage, though in the end they would be  
killed because of it. But if they weren't killed, if she could train  
them so they had the strength and skill they needed to go with their  
courage and guts, then perhaps they could become a force to be reckoned  
with.  
  
But she couldn't find any paths within the Gates that showed her  
a possible future of this happening. After some more searching, she  
came to realize that she never once saw a time where the House of  
Serenity would fall. It was as though the Gates of Time refused to  
admit that such a thing could ever happen.  
  
Setsuna had been forced to decide whether her guess on how the  
Gates worked was correct or not. All of the books she had studied on  
the gates had only made mention of searching for paths that would allow  
the Silver Millenium to continue, never once did someone record a search  
for seeing it end. This was perhaps her best chance, so she took the  
risk and saved the pair from the wrath of Queen Serenity.  
  
Again Setsuna's fingers flipped straight to a page, though this  
one had no tearstains. She didn't look at the words so much as she did  
the letters, wondering if she could analyze her writing that day. She  
failed to do so, though she did recall how ecstatic and thrilled she was  
that her plan was working so far. The two boys on who she was placing a  
large piece of faith had agreed to help her.  
  
Flipping again, Setsuna arrived at the next blank page to write  
upon. Pulling out a quill and ink, she set the book down on her desk  
and thought for a few moments. Things were going as she had planned, it  
seemed as though her desperate gamble would work. But perhaps it would  
be best to check the Gates of Time once more. Maybe now, with things as  
far as they were, it would show her something. Placing that idea to the  
side, she began to write.  
  
***  
  
Ryoga Habiki swallowed hard as he gazed out of the view port.  
He wondered why he had been chosen to lead this attack when there were  
those who both out ranked him and had more experience then he did in  
combat. And yet he was leading this strike. Before him the Jupiter  
Three orbital station grew larger. Spread around the assault shuttle he  
was aboard the Third Freedom Fleet was engaging the Jupiter Royal Fleet.  
  
Supposedly this would be a fast mission, taking no longer then  
twenty minutes. A dozen Assault shuttles escorted by the Third Fleet  
would send 200 soldiers on board the station. Once on board the  
soldiers would make their way to key points, set up heavy explosives,  
arm them, and pull out. Then as their forces retreated, the explosives  
would detonate causing confusion among the enemy while they pulled back  
to their own lines.  
  
And for some strange reason that no one had bothered to explain,  
he, Ryoga Habiki, just a senior member at the Saturn Military Academy  
until a pair of months ago, was in command of the assault team. Perhaps  
whoever designed the plan had faith that he could handle the mission,  
that he could shoulder the responsibility. It was far more likely,  
however, that whoever had planned the mission just didn't want to risk  
anyone who was important.  
  
Glancing over at the mission timer, Ryoga again swallowed hard.  
Reaching out with a slightly trembling hand, he flicked on the intercom  
and com. "Thirty seconds until go people." He was surprised at how  
steady his voice was. He couldn't even hear a touch of fear in it.  
"Get ready to break through." Again with his trembling hand, Ryoga  
turned both systems off. He then nodded to the pilot of the shuttle and  
left the cockpit for the passenger compartment.  
  
Opening a container at the back of the compartment, Ryoga  
withdrew a bladed staff that had a hefty weight at the end. The blade  
had runes of pure silver inlaid to its surface. It was hoped that the  
runes of power would give him an advantage over any demons that their  
opponents might summon for help. Armed, armored, and as ready as he  
thought he could be, Ryoga closed his eyes and waited.  
  
In the thirty seconds that it took for the craft to reach the  
station, Ryoga's mind went through a dozen nightmare scenarios. They  
ranged from the station blowing up just as his craft set down to Queen  
Serenity herself being on board and destroying all of their minds as  
they stepped out of their craft. Then a shudder ran through the craft,  
there was a thump, a hiss of air, and the back hatch opened.  
  
No blast of energy came through the entryway. No hoard of  
demons appeared in their midst. Raising a hand, Ryoga waved his people  
forward. Now things got tricky.  
  
***  
  
The room was bright, even cheerful considering who's thrown was  
at the far end of it. Upon the thrown at the top of a raised dais sat  
Beryl, a Dutchess of Earth, an avid hater of the Silver Millenium, and a  
consorter of demons. She had pale skin, blood red hair, and very cruel  
eyes. And she was clearly angry.  
  
Beryl was normally angry at something, and this time that  
something was the two young men standing before her thrown. Neither had  
bowed to her, neither had shown much courtesy toward her, and neither  
showed even the slightest hint of fear of her. And it was driving her  
mad.  
  
Well, madder, anyway. At least that's what Ranma thought. If  
Beryl had been sane to start with, she wouldn't be working to free  
Metallia. But then they wouldn't have any use for her, either. Which  
would have been fine with him. It wasn't the palace or the people  
within it that bothered him. No, it was the fact that Beryl's palace  
was at the North Pole of the world, and it was damn cold. Instead, he  
spoke with a calm sure voice. "Your Grace, thank-you for seeing us."  
  
"Of course. Speak your words."  
  
Ranma wondered briefly how Beryl could make her voice colder  
then the air in the palace before he continued. "Our Lady Pluto has  
seen within the Gates of Time that you shall attack Serenity soon, Your  
Grace. Should you attack alone, you are destined to fail and die in the  
attack." He ignored the flinty look he got and continued speaking.  
"Our Lady has no wish to see Serenity survive and continue to rule, and  
so, she proposes a temporary alliance."  
  
"What would I get out of this?"  
  
Straight and to the point. Ranma found that rather refreshing  
after having to dance with politicians the past few weeks. Getting  
right to the heart of the matter was rather nice. "For starters you get  
the chance to live. Don't get me wrong, we do NOT need you, Beryl."  
Okay, so he wasn't exactly tactful. "We will win eventually. The only  
question is how long it takes us to finish off Serenity's little  
playmates, and then Serenity herself."  
  
  
"I think you're lying. And your Lady," Beryl spoke with  
contempt just dripping from her voice, "wouldn't be so stupid as to  
offer me so pitiful of rewards."  
  
Tomas, who had been silent thus far, nodded. "You are correct,  
Your Grace." He showed no signs of the anger he felt at Beryl for  
speaking of Setsuna with such disrespect. "Lady Pluto is willing to  
grant you control of the Solar System from Mars inward. We will use the  
asteroid belt as the boarder between our two nations."  
  
Beryl remained silent for a few moments. "You are dismissed. I  
will think about your offer. Someone show them to their room."  
  
Ranma and Tomas turned to follow one of the maids that had begun  
to leave the room. As they stepped out of the room they shared a  
glance, wondering why Beryl had cut them off so soon. They had far more  
to their speech and what they could offer. What was going through the  
crazy bitch's mind?  
  
***  
  
It was the fire that awoke him. The burning sensation that tore  
across his face brought him back to the realm of the living. Ryoga let  
out a long, low groan of pain. His face burned with a fire so intense  
he wasn't sure what was causing it.  
  
Slowly his eyes came from the blackness. It took all of his  
strength not to scream or even cringe in fear, for over him stood the  
Dark Priestess of Mars, the Senshi of that blood covered world. The  
memories came back to him in a rush. The unit he was a part of had made  
it to the airflow control station and had set its explosive packs. As  
they were pulling out of the station not one or two Senshi, but all four  
ambushed them. His men had fought hard, but they fell one by one. Then  
something slammed into him, knocking him unconscious.  
  
And now he was here, in the clutches of those who he was  
fighting against. He was dead now, he was sure. They would torture him  
in ways so horrible he couldn't imagine; they would offer his heart to  
whatever dark god it was they worshipped. But perhaps he had  
accomplished something good, perhaps the mission had been a success. He  
certainly hoped so.  
  
The fear in his eyes was easy for the Senshi of Mars to read.  
Her dark smile and eyes promising suffering showed that to Ryoga. He  
pulled and yanked at the chains holding him down, but even with his  
strength he failed to so much as cause them to twitch.  
  
He would have continued to struggle, but for the hot finger that  
began to trace over his face. He could feel the Senshi's fingers burn  
into his face, melting the skin and causing it to scar. "My dear little  
soldier," the Senshi's voice was sultry, almost promising both pleasure  
and pain. It was then that Ryoga noticed that she was naked.  
  
His nose almost began to bleed. Had he not been so scared it  
might have. As it was, however, all he could think of was trying to  
find a way to escape, to return home to his friends and family. Even as  
he began to pull against the chains again he knew it was useless.  
  
Which is why what the Red Priestess said next shocked him. "I'm  
going to let you go, my dear little soldier. You are going to pay a  
steep price, little soldier. Rebellion against our Queen needs to be  
discouraged, and death is far to clean and simple an escape. No,  
instead I am going to give you a curse, one that will haunt you and your  
family to the end of your days." The Senshi of Mars then reached over  
to the side to get something.  
  
Ryoga tried to turn his head to see what she was getting, even  
as he began to tremble in fear. Who knew what kind of curse would be so  
cruel that death was a better option?  
  
Then the Senshi of Mars was over him again and in her hand was a  
long thin knife, glowing orange by the fire it had been resting in.  
Then, with a wicked and almost gleeful grin, she began to carve into  
Ryoga's chest, chanting a dark mantra all along.  
  
Ryoga began to scream.  
  
***  
  
Setsuna blinked her tired eyes as she finished dating the entry  
into her journal. It had been a long day filled with more diplomacy  
then she wanted to remember. But her council was finally formed, and a  
truly fair and just rule would begin within the Sol System. It was a  
day long awaited for many.  
  
Again she opened the drawer of her desk and placed Journal in  
its special place. There was no real reason to keep it there, as all  
the system knew her feelings about Serenity now. But it was a habit she  
was used to, and one that was harmless.  
  
Getting up from her desk, she walked to the large, body length  
mirror that was on the far side of her bedroom. With an almost  
negligent movement, she removed her bathrobe and gazed at the skin that  
her nightgown revealed. The last of the bruises had finally faded from  
her skin, and the scars had been healed over completely by those mages  
who had joined her side of the civil war.  
  
For the first time in a long while, she tried a smile in her  
mirror, checking to see if it still fit on her face. It had been far  
too long since she had last gazed at herself like this without feeling  
the pain and sadness that she had hidden away for so long. Her life was  
finally moving on.  
  
Turning away from the mirror, the smile still on her face,  
Setsuna walked over to her large bed and slipped in under the covers.  
She had another long day ahead of her and she needed all of the sleep  
she could get. Perhaps she'd manage not to have any nightmares this  
time. It would be good for her soul if she had peaceful dreams, dreams  
of better and happier times that should come in the future.  
  
And as she drifted to sleep, her last question for the day was  
whether there would be a time that her bed wouldn't be so cold.  
  
  
Author's Notes: So, chapter four comes to an end, and things are set  
up. Come back for Chapter 5, in which this story comes to an end. 


	6. Chapter 5

Disclaimer: None of the characters of Ranma ½ and Sailor Moon belong to  
me. I recommend that you don't sue me as I don't have the money to even  
afford a lawyer for 15 minutes.  
  
Twin Black Phoenix  
A Ranma ½ and Sailor Moon Crossover  
By Tomas Megarson  
Email: NighthawkTM@yahoo.com  
Web: http://nighthawk.anifics.com  
  
  
Note: This is going to be dark in some places. It will be extremely  
dark at times. If you don't like dark fics, then I don't recommend it.  
  
Chapter 5  
  
It was a silent night. Shadows held their places as the moon  
flowed through its paces. The Earth hung high in the sky waiting for  
the dawn to come. Two shadows moved from opposite ends to meet upon the  
roof of a darkened shop. Neither shadow moved but stared at the other.  
As if on some silent command the two embraced. In the darkness none  
could tell which was speaking, the taller or the shorter. Neither so  
much as flinched to show any sign.  
  
"So, did we get our orders?"  
  
"Yes, Beryl was most exact in their detail. We strike from  
within the ballroom. Destroy the two arches to block the two doors and  
kill anyone trying to go through the window. When the Senshi transform  
we make our exit and loop around and up to the roof. We get the  
murdering scum."  
  
"Mars and Jupiter? It's going to be a fun night then. I can't  
wait to make those bitches pay for what they've done."  
  
Finally one of them moved. The taller one nodded its head.  
"Salina and Karrina will be fully revenged, and so will everyone else in  
this solar system. In this day of reckoning we'll see to it with our  
own hands." A silence fell between them. Nothing stirred, even the air  
fell still. The voice of the shorter one brought life back into an  
otherwise void in the night.  
  
"I saw him today. I was going through my check when I caught a  
glimpse of him below. He turned into an alley as I reached the street.  
When I got there he was gone."  
  
"Damn that Serenity! Damn her to the blackest pit of Hell  
itself! His curse is another reason to end her existence. Anyone that  
cruel deserves to die. To force him to live knowing that he will never  
be able to be depended upon by anyone ever again is the cruelest thing  
she could have done to him." Yet another silence fell over the two.  
Once again it seemed as though the air itself had killed the wind. Not  
even a bug could be heard to make a sound. Again the shorter one spoke,  
breaking the silence.  
  
"I don't trust Beryl. She's as bad as Serenity is. Was it  
wise for us to join forces with her?"  
  
"What choice did we have? The two of us can't do it alone.  
Even if he were here the three of us would fail. There's no way we'd be  
able to bring enough of our forces here to make a difference. Besides,  
we only need her for right now. As soon as our goals are succeeded we  
can eliminate her too. After the battle she won't be strong enough to  
defend against us. And her so-called Generals are even worse. You or I  
alone can take all four of them at once. No, this was the only way."  
  
A slight displacement of air had them moving at once. The  
smaller one took to the air coming down on the intruder at a high angle  
while the taller one dove across the ground coming up with fingers  
stiffened and aiming toward the intruder's heart. Both stopped the  
attack as they came upon their opponent and fell in beside one another.  
The tall one spoke. "Lady Pluto, how may we serve you?"  
  
"I just want to tell you not to worry about Beryl. After the  
battle it will be many years before she can even pose a marginal threat.  
Be wary tomorrow, though. The Queen has ordered your capture and death  
as a number one priority. We must be careful not to be caught. I just  
hope that everything can be fixed in the future."  
  
The small one spoke up. "We hope so too, my Lady. We have a  
request, however."  
  
Pluto didn't even blink. "What is it?"  
  
"If we are ever needed to serve you again we wish to remember  
this time. Please, save our memories for us and reawaken them at the  
appointed time. We want to hold on to this life when we travel to the  
future."  
  
Pluto smiled. Or for her, what passed for a smile, a slight  
turning of the lips. "I will see to it. Be well, and I will see you  
tomorrow night."  
  
As one the two shadows spoke. "Be well, my Lady." Pluto  
vanished into the time rift. The taller of the two turned to its  
shorter companion.  
  
"Until tomorrow night, Ranma."  
  
"Until then, Tomas."  
  
***  
  
He knew he needed to sleep, but his eyes wouldn't close.  
Instead they continued to stare out the window onto the busy street as  
he sat on the sill. His blue eyes followed a pair of young girls who  
ran down the cobble road laughing, playing, and filled with life. As  
Ranma watched, he wondered if they would be alive tomorrow, if they  
would survive the coming storm. Not many were going to, he was sure.  
  
The sun was high in the air, shedding its golden light across  
the silver city, hiding the darkness that was in its heart as it slowly  
paced its way across the sky. It was interesting, Ranma thought, how  
something so important was so easily ignores by the people. The sun was  
a lot like the freedom that Serenity's citizens didn't have. It was  
there for the taking if they were willing to take that risk. It was  
there for everyone to feel, enjoy, and bask in, yet only a few were  
willing to reach out and take hold of it.  
  
But after tonight, all that would change. Serenity would be  
thrown down; her court destroyed; her enforcers done away with; and  
freedom would be given to all. Those who were weak would share in its  
glory with those who were strong. The freedom that all people deserved  
would be given freely, and fear would be destroyed.  
  
Never again would people be taken from the streets without  
cause. Never again would a group of innocents be butchered to keep  
others in line. Never again would a child like those two girls be  
placed under the sacrificial knife. Ranma would make sure of it.  
  
And as the sun slowly set behind the palace, Ranma stood up and  
looked around the bare room. In one corner was a bag that contained his  
meager supplies for the three weeks he had spent on the moon. Four  
changes of clothing, some dried rations, and a small communicator were  
all that he had. It wasn't much to live on for almost a month's time,  
but he had.  
  
Going to the back, he reached in a removed the one outfit he had  
not worn yet. It was a solid black formal suit, without a hint of  
color. He hadn't worn it since his last ball on the moon, but it was  
time again. As Ranma slowly changed into it, he thought of how ironic  
it was that he could have ended this all so long ago in this very suit,  
at another ball. Perhaps more lives would have been saved if he had,  
and perhaps more would have been lost. He just didn't know.  
  
Finally, reaching into the bag, Ranma removed a black mask. He  
stared at it for a few moments before sliding it over his face. Turning  
back to the window, he stared at his reflection. The reflection of a  
phoenix's face was all that stared back at him. With a final nod, Ranma  
turned and left.  
  
***  
  
On the other side of the City of Silver, another figure reached  
to his face and touched a black phoenix mask. His fingers traced the  
designs etched into the thin metal, his mind burning them into memory.  
Tomas wondered what felt so...fateful about the mask. There was  
something there that just seemed to scream destiny to him.  
  
It was with a shake of his head that he turned and left his  
cellar safe house. He slowly climbed the flight of stairs that took him  
to the surface, just a small shop really, owned by a ribbon clerk who  
lost both her husband and daughter to Serenity's slaughter. At the top  
of the stairs, Tomas listened at the door for a moment, and not hearing  
anyone, he opened the door and stepped out.  
  
Red tinted light filled the store as the sun dropped below the  
horizon. Ever so slowly, so slow that he could barely notice, the store  
grew darker. Tomas took in the store one last time, taking in the  
peacefulness of the place, before turning finally to the owner. She  
wasn't a pretty woman, though something in her eyes made her attractive.  
That thought caused Tomas to pause. Why had he thought that? Perhaps  
it was because he was most likely walking to his death. Still, the  
thought caused him to loose what he was going to say, so he simply bowed  
to her in thanks and left.  
  
***  
  
Ranma stepped into the ballroom alone, his eyes taking in the  
crowd. It was almost déjà vu for him, as he knew he had done this  
before. Sure there were some slight differences, such as Tomas not  
being next to him, and Karrina not hiding in the shadows of the far  
corner. As his eyes began to sweep to the other side of the room, a  
slight movement in the dark corner caught his eye. He turned his gaze  
back to it, this time catching an arm raised to a brow in a two-finger  
salute. So Tomas was in the shadows of the corner this time. For some  
reason Ranma felt that as...appropriate.  
  
And something wanted him to keep things close to as they were  
before. He wasn't really sure why or what, but something in his mind  
told him to do so. And as Tomas wasn't going to be the one to wreck the  
plan, he'd have to. Ranma finished taking in the room and chose his  
target. If things went well, this could even help the plan. A lot like  
the last time this happened did.  
  
Ranma moved at a slow and sure pace approaching his chosen  
victim with all the grace of a hunting cat. He relaxed himself a bit  
more and allowed something dangerous to enter his movements. If he was  
going to pull this off, he had to make sure that the Senshi of Mars  
thought he was as dangerous as she was. Of course, he was more  
dangerous, but he didn't want her to know that. Yet.  
  
He had been approaching her from behind, but the Senshi of Mars  
turned as he neared, obviously sensing his approach. Ranma was  
instantly thankful that he had managed to never meet this particular  
Senshi. She'd have no way to recognize him with her abilities. This  
was confirmed as she merely raised an eyebrow as he drew close, rather  
then trying to take his head off.  
  
Stopping only a few feet away from her, Ranma gave her a grand  
sweeping bow, far deeper then he'd given anyone before. As he came up,  
he offered his hand to her. "Would you care to dance, My Lady of Mars?"  
Ranma returned the penetrating look she gave him, never once wavering,  
as he knew a weakness here could prove instantly fatal.  
  
Finally, however, the fire maiden of Mars accepted his hand. "I  
think I would like that." Her voice was soft and sweet, and even  
slightly submissive. As Ranma led her to the dance floor he wondered if  
this was how she managed to lead so many to her alter.  
  
***  
  
Setsuna gazed into the Gates of Time as events began to rapidly  
move forward. She couldn't interfere here, yet at least. If she  
stepped into play any time before Serenity was fatally injured, the  
Queen could use the crystal to take away her powers as the Senshi of  
Time, and then all would be lost. She was forced by events to remain  
where she was, even as her two closest friends placed themselves at  
great risk.  
  
The plan she had created so long ago was a simple one. She  
wanted it as simple as possible to reduce the risk of anything going  
wrong. When Beryl attacked the ball Ranma and Tomas would seal the exit  
into the palace, forcing the Senshi to go out to the balcony and face  
their foe. Then, when the Senshi engaged Beryl's generals in battle,  
her two Knights would strike from behind, mortally wounding each of the  
remaining Senshi, and forcing Serenity herself to act. Then, while  
Serenity struggled banish Metallia once more, again her Knights would  
strike from behind, mortally wounding Serenity as well. The Gates of  
Time showed three scenarios for after that, and only Serenity could  
decide which one would come true. The first scenario would be that  
Serenity used the Ginzuishou to destroy everything around her, including  
her Senshi, Ranma and Tomas, Metallia and her lackys, and the moon  
itself. The second scenario would be that Serenity would use the last  
of her strength to give the Ginzuishou to her daughter, and then Ranma  
would kill the princess while Tomas killed Beryl. The finally scenario  
would be that Serenity would use the Ginzuishou to send her court to the  
future to reestablish the rule of the line of Serenity at a time when  
those who stood against her no longer existed.  
  
It was interesting, Setsuna thought, that one person would have  
the ability to create three very different timelines just through a  
single event. It normally took dozens of people to act in concert for  
such a thing to occur, but the Queen of half the solar system now had an  
opportunity to shape the destiny of so many people.  
  
As Setsuna watched the ball continue within the Gates, she  
wondered just which destiny it would be that Queen Serenity chose.  
  
***  
  
As the ball continued, Ranma stayed with the Senshi of Mars.  
Normally they spent the time dancing, mostly in front of the Senshi of  
Venus. From the glower her face, the Senshi of Venus was not pleased  
that Mars was flaunting the fact that she had someone interested in her.  
Ranma find the vanity in the pair rather amusing, more so since neither  
knew what he had planned for the rest of the night.  
  
A couple of times their dancing had taken them near the shadowy  
corner in which Tomas was trying to hide. Given the fact that no one  
had approached him yet about anything Ranma could only conclude that he  
was doing a good job at it. Ranma relaxed slightly more at that. Since  
Tomas had spent some time here at the palace and a various functions he  
would be far better known. It was far more likely that Tomas would be  
discovered then he would, and that would cause everything to start too  
early.  
  
And still Ranma danced, occasionally making small talk and lying  
about life in general to the priestess he danced with. It had almost  
gotten to be a routine for him, and he knew that he was beginning to  
fall into a pattern. Ranma did his best to refocus his mind on the  
battle that would come ahead as much as he did the dance, making sure  
his mind didn't get lulled into some sort of half sleep state.  
  
It was sometime later, though how long Ranma was not sure, when  
a paniced guard rushed into the ballroom. The poor man raced across the  
room toward Queen Serenity and Ranma was sure he knew what the man was  
going to say. Before the man could speak, however, the ground shook and  
the large glass wall shattered as an explosion rocked the palace.  
  
Most of those present were knocked to the floor by the force of  
the blast, but a few remained standing. The Senshi of Mars began to  
turn her head toward the Queen when Ranma's hands suddenly came up and  
grabbed her face. He twisted her head fast and hard, the crack of her  
breaking neck filling the hall.  
  
Ranma dropped to one knee even as he let the now dead Senshi go.  
He felt a rush of heat go over his head, the fireball that had created  
it easily missing both him and the falling Senshi. A bare second later  
and another, though smaller, explosion rocked the room as Tomas' attack  
slammed into the wall above the entrance, causing the area to crumble  
and drop rubble to block the door.  
  
Even as the guests began to panic, Ranma summoned forth his  
armor. As the armor formed over his face, something felt wrong. He  
wasn't sure what it was, but it just seemed different then it had always  
been. Pushing aside the worry for later, he summoned forth his claws,  
spinning, and slicing open a noble's throat as he came to his feet. The  
blood flicked off of his claws as he came to his feet, his eyes  
searching for more targets.  
  
And targets were something there was plenty of. Not one person  
within this ballroom was innocent. Each had supported and even aided  
Serenity in her reign of terror. Each person was guilty of crimes  
against all people, and Ranma was going to play the part of justice. Or  
maybe vengeance. Both were acceptable to him.  
  
Ranma moved through the crowd fast and light on his feet, his  
claws flashing in the lights as they sought out throats, faces, and  
hearts from those loyal to Serenity. He kept moving as he attacked, not  
wanting to present an easy target. He also made sure that while his  
path was somewhat erratic, he was always heading towards the now  
shattered glass wall, knowing he had to get out doors.  
  
A flash of something to the right, and Ranma's claws flashed  
out, only to be caught upon Tomas' golden sword. Behind his own mask,  
Ranma's eyes flickered in surprise. The mask that used to cover Tomas'  
face when his armor was summoned was smooth and flat, and completely  
featureless except for a pair of blood red slits where his eyes were.  
Now, however, the mask did have shape, the shape of the phoenix mask  
that Tomas had worn to the ball.  
  
Ranma resisted the urge to reach up and touch his own face to  
see if that was the change that he had felt when he called his armor.  
Instead, he nodded in greeting before he asked about it. "Me too?"  
  
Tomas nodded in agreement. "Yeah, you too. Come on, let's go.  
There's still three Senshi left, and we've got to get in place to  
strike." Tomas gestured off to the side with his sword to where they  
were supposed to go, the blade taking a slight moment to slash the  
throat of someone whom got too close.  
  
With a nod, Ranma turned and dashed toward the appointed place,  
quickly ducking into the shadows to hide himself. He felt more then saw  
Tomas follow behind him. Even though the battle had only lasted a  
couple of minutes so far, Ranma knew it was almost over. In perhaps  
another ten minutes it would all be decided, and the future would be  
secured. What future it would be he didn't know.  
  
***  
  
Setsuna watched as the poor souls that had their humanity stolen  
from them by Sailor Mercury rampaged all over the moon. The poor  
creatures were forced to act as vampires, stealing the lives of others  
to sustain their own. She knew she would have to destroy these  
monsters, these youma, soon. But it could wait until after Serenity was  
dealt with.  
  
Changing the view with merely a thought, she turned her  
attention to Beryl's generals as they battled the Senshi. Or the  
remaining Senshi, anyway. Ranma's killing Mars so soon was not in the  
plan, but it wasn't all that big a surprise either. Still, with Mars  
gone, the four generals were easily forcing the Senshi back with their  
youma allies.  
  
Another change of view and she was watching her knights as they  
stood deep within the shadows of the royal garden watching the  
surrounding chaos. They were ready to attack when it was time, but  
until then, all they were required to do was wait. It wouldn't be long,  
she knew, and the battle would be over.  
  
One last change of view, and Sailor Pluto was watching Princess  
Serenity and Endymion as Beryl attacked the pair, trying to tear them  
apart, to capture Endymion for her own, and to kill Serenity. The time  
of the Silver Millenium was finally coming to an end.  
  
***  
  
The four generals were steadily pushing the Senshi toward the  
Royal Garden where Beryl was attacking the Princess. Tomas waited  
quietly, trying to feel what was happening rather then think about it.  
The attack had to be timed just right, so that Queen Serenity saw it,  
but couldn't react to it. They needed her distracted. And then  
something came into his mind, and his head snapped up. "NOW!"  
  
But even as he started moving, Ranma was a step ahead of him,  
heading straight for Sailor Venus, his claws extended. Reaching over  
his shoulder, Tomas drew his sword and headed for Sailor Jupiter.  
Coming within what he felt was range, he tensed his muscles slightly and  
pushed hard against the ground. He stayed low to the ground but flowed  
across without his feet touching as though he was flying.  
  
The attack wasn't difficult at all. He simply extended the  
blade in front of himself and drove it straight through Jupiter's back,  
burying it up to the hand guard in her. Tomas saw her body stiffen, and  
her scream of pain was like music to him. He almost whipped the sword  
out of her as he turned to Mercury. Across the way, Ranma had done the  
same to Venus. Moving in tandem, the pair quickly made their way to the  
final Senshi, and at the same time buried their weapons into her.  
  
As Mercury dropped, blood spitting from her mouth, Tomas and  
Ranma gazed across her body at each other. And then were blown to the  
ground by a blast of white power.  
  
***  
  
At the Gates of Time Setsuna shielded her eyes from the blinding  
light. Serenity had made her entrance, and the play was almost done.  
As the light died down she returned to viewing the battle. There  
Serenity stood, bathed in the bright light of the Ginzuishou as she  
placed her might against that of Metallia's. If she could, Setsuna  
would have left the two to destroy each other and spare her Knights what  
was going to occure, but she knew she couldn't do that. It was too  
great a risk in the change of the Time Stream.  
  
Even now as the two forces battled, Setsuna could feel the new  
branches of time being formed. Whenever great powers meet, there is  
always a great risk of Chance coming into play. But other events could  
happen to move chance away, and one of those events was the wounding of  
Queen Serenity.  
  
Now all Setsuna could do was pray.  
  
***  
  
Tomas shook his head as he pushed himself off the ground once  
more. Turning his gaze around, he tried to find Ranma. His eyes swept  
the barren landscape, suddenly grateful for his armor. Had Serenity  
focused that attack rather then struck in a blind rage he would have  
been killed for sure. Even as it was, he felt banged up.  
  
Turning around to his other side, Tomas saw Ranma not three feet  
away from him, also kneeling on the ground, and using his hands to  
support himself. "Hey, you okay?"  
  
Ranma's head turned to look at him, the dark blue eyes of his  
mask showing no emotion, not that they could anyway. "Yeah, I'm fine.  
We've got to do this."  
  
"Yeah. I'm ready. You?"  
  
Ranma didn't say anything, instead pushing himself off the  
ground and onto his feet. Tomas followed his example and tightened his  
legs slightly, testing the muscles. They didn't feel all that bad.  
With a mental command, his sword appeared in his hand one more even as  
Ranma's claws reformed.  
  
Drawing in a deep breath, Tomas spoke quietly, his eyes locked  
on the glowing form of Queen Serenity. "On three." Immediately Tomas  
began a mental countdown from three. He knew Ranma was doing the same,  
and placed it aside. This would be a fast strike.  
  
And then three came, and both shot across the ground, their legs  
pumping as they raced for the Queen. The one good thing from the blast  
that Serenity had released was that it had removed the obstructions that  
had once been between the pair and herself. They both raced faster then  
they had earlier in the battle, almost faster then the eye could follow.  
  
But somehow Serenity had seen them. Her head lowered and gazed  
right at the racing pair. The look in her eyes could have been from a  
devil for all they could tell, but they didn't stop.  
  
The pair were ten feet from Serenity when the blast of energy  
came. This time it wasn't a broad attack, but two tightly focused  
lances of light that struck both in the chest. Ranma was sent flying  
backward from the attack his armor caving in.  
  
Blood spurted from Tomas' mouth as the attack punched through  
his armor, hitting a weak point in it, and continued through his chest.  
He didn't stop though, something driving him forward, an unknown force  
deep within himself. He could see Serenity's eyes widen in shock and  
fear as he drew closer, his sword extended. He was only seven feet  
away, and he could now complete his mission. At five and a half feet  
the tip of his blade touched Serenity's robes. At four and a half feet  
he had driven the sword into her right lung and through her back. At  
four feet Tomas' body gave out and he collapsed face first into the  
dirt.  
  
He wasn't sure how long it was, perhaps seconds, perhaps hours,  
but then he was turned over and Setsuna was there. He managed one last  
look at her face, into her tear filled eyes before things started to go  
black. He struggled to lift his arms, to touch her one last time.  
  
"I can't see..." he managed to croak out. His armor bled away  
then, taking the phoenix mask with it, and revealing a hole through his  
chest almost an inch wide with blood quickly pooling under him. Still,  
even with his armor gone, he couldn't see. And then both hands were  
taken. In his right hand was the sure and strong grip of Ranma. It was  
a grip he had known for a long time, and when he couldn't mistake. In  
his left hand was one he didn't recognize. It was soft, and yet strong  
as well, and slightly trembling. He knew it was Setsuna's hand, though  
he couldn't recall ever holding it before.  
  
And he knew he was dead. There was nothing else that it could  
be. But at least he was with those he...loved. Slowly, he managed to  
speak again, struggling through the pain and darkness.  
"Ranma...goodbye...Setsuna...I..."  
  
And he never finished, his life having left his last words  
behind.  
  
***  
  
Again. He lost someone again. But there wasn't time to mourn  
now, and there was no one to take up the slack. There was still one  
thing left to do. Reaching out with his free hand, he closed Tomas'  
still open eyes. "Sleep well, my friend. Maybe...maybe we'll meet  
again. In another life."  
  
Ranma then stood up, and turned to face the still living Queen.  
Ever so slowly he approached her, his claws forming one last time. "And  
now, Your Majesty, it is over." Ranma left Sailor Pluto where she was,  
he left her to mourn. This time he would be the strong one. "You have  
only two choices left. Surrender your Kingdom to us, or die."  
  
From her dying place, Serenity, Queen of the Silver Millenium,  
looked up with hate filled eyes. "Fool!" she snarled, "With the  
Ginzuishou, there is always another choice! You've won this time, but  
my line WILL continue!" With a struggling hand, Serenity raised the  
glowing crystal sphere one last time. "GINZUISHOU! SEND MY COURT TO   
THE FUTURE!"  
  
In response to the Queen's wish, the crystal began to glow and  
pulse. A gentle light this time, began to spread out across the moon.  
But Serenity was too weak to control it, too weak to direct the power as  
she wanted. Slowly the bodies of all who had fallen and all who were  
still alive began to pulse with energy. Ranma glanced over his shoulder  
to see Sailor Pluto now gone, and Tomas' body pulsing with all the  
others. Perhaps they would meet again in the future.  
  
Again Ranma turned to the Queen and smirked even as the crystal  
used the last of its wielder's life to carry out her wish. "Yes,  
foolish Queen, send your court forward, and as you die, know that you  
have sent us as well, and know that when your court comes to life once  
more, we will destroy it once again!"  
  
A bubble of energy formed around Ranma and slowly raised him to  
the sky. As with all the others caught up in the wish, Ranma began to  
curl up into a ball. Still, he smirked as he slowly began to drift  
away. He would be reborn with the others, and should he be needed, he  
would be called for duty once more. And then his world went black.  
  
***  
  
Setsuna raised her head from the tear stained pillow, and pushed  
herself over to lie on her back. The Silver Millenium had come to an  
end, but at such a frightening cost. When the crystal had failed to  
gain enough power from Serenity's life to grant the final wish, it had  
sucked all life from the worlds that had once had Senshi. Now, all but  
Earth were uninhabitable wastelands, destroyed by Serenity's last act,  
the people killed when their worlds were destroyed.  
  
And she was responsible for it. She had forced the options onto  
Serenity by her actions. Had she not acted all of those people would be  
alive. Alive and under the rule of a dictator, but alive, none the  
less. It felt as though her heart had been destroyed. All of those who  
had fought beside her for a better future were now nothing more then a  
memory. One of her memories.  
  
She could never let such a disaster happen again. When the  
Senshi were reborn, she would have to guide them, change them, and  
insure that if they did remember who they were, that they would be  
revolted by what they recalled. It was her only chance to set things  
right.  
  
And if that failed, she'd at least have her last knight to aid  
her in destroying them. And maybe, if the glowing she saw before she  
fled to the Gates was true, she'd have her other knight as well.  
  
The End  
  
Author's Notes: Well, there you go, the story of Ranma and Tomas and the  
fall of the House of Serenity is now over. It was a joy to write this,  
most of the time, and I am proud to have it done. I'll see you all in a  
different story and in a different time. 


End file.
